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			Wednesday April 30 With Rest of Wall St. Penitent, Morgan Stanley Tries On a Halo NY Times (R) "Unless you anticipate Lehman getting I-banking business from them, I would rate them neutral” WP For Wall Street, Fines Are A Day's Pay Forbes Levitt: I’ll Take Some Blame NY Post Testimony - Sir Alan Greenspan FED Chicago, NY Data Show Economic Weakness Reuters Weekly ABC Confidence Poll Declines ABC Postwar Boost Ends as Consumer Confidence Falls Sharply The real economic news UPI The Dollar's Doomsday Cycle TheStreet Dollar Falls to Four-Year Low Bloom Negative sentiment remains FT Kitco Bush's role in state fiscal crises BG On Steel Tariffs WND On Greenspan EZ A Love Letter to Larry Kudlow Smart Money What's worrying the Dow? CBS MarketWatch Is It Safe to Go Back In? Fortune Aid the economy: Save? Or spend? Philly Inquirer For unemployed, statistics tell only part of story CS Monitor Treasury Says U.S. Could Face Default AP Debt to the penny 15 biggest NW pension funds short $9.5 billion Seattle Times In the NorthWest, Companies deposited more than $1 billion into their defined-benefit pension funds last year, a fourfold increase from 2001. Some companies will add even more this year and beyond. US funds see year's first net inflow FT ICI Benefits Now 30% of Comp CFO Demand for U.S. refinancings slows Reuters MBAA O'Neal and Barrett blow smoke CNN/Money HealthSouth may file for bankruptcy this summer Reuters (NYT) Bethlehem Steel's long fall ends today in corporate death Philly Inquirer US Steel Warns FT IBM Shareholders Turn Down Options Measure TheStreet New Tyco Disclosure Expected Reuters (WSJ) TYC is likely to disclose roughly $1.2 billion in fresh accounting problems Janus profit falls 60% Rocky Mountain News Ford Asset-Backed Plan May Hurt Ratings, Moody's Says Bloomberg Indicted CEO gets $3.5M departure deal Star-Ledger In return for the golden handshake, the company said its former chairman (who was recently indicted by a grand jury on insider trading charges), agreed not to join or create a competitor for five years. Baron Pays $2.7 million in stock scam NYP Credit agencies hold on to Enron papers FT Gold firms shafted by strong rand Business Day DROOY - HMY Gold Seasonality over 30-Years Gold-Eagle Gold investment demand hit 35-year high in 2002-CPM Reuters Warren Buffett Bets on China -- Should You? Bloomberg Infectious Pests Gloom, Boom, and Doom French economy shrinks BBC Bleak outlook for Japanese economy BBC Bank of Japan to Inject More Money Into the Economy Bloomberg Revolution over executive pay brewing in Britain Toronto Star Angry investors attack Corus board’s pay policy Times Online Dissatisfied shareholders grill Stelco brass about loss Toronto Star Despondency abounds New Zealand Herald Business confidence has sunk to levels normally associated with little or no growth in the economy. Rivkin guilty of insider trading Sydney Morning Herald Iraqi firms excluded from reconstruction Washington Times U.S. military quits Saudi Arabia Globe & Mail “I just don't think the compensation levels right now justify the horrific lifestyle of the sell-side analyst.” I “felt pressured to put sell recommendations on 2 stocks that were good investments” “I write, “Buy on weakness,” and compliance insists that it read, “The stock is a buy and would be particularly attractive during times of market weakness”” Bloomberg Nobody started whining until the bubble burst Rocky Mountain News Tuesday April 29 Grubman ~ Blodget ~ SEC Statement Few believe $1.4B deal will change Wall St. USAT Wall St settlement avoids the 'G' word Reuters Investment banks paid rivals for research USAT It’s Not Over Yet NY Post The-Emails This Wasn’t A Settlement; It was Blackmail NYP Angry investors unlikely to see much payback from companies Free Press Big players are turning away from stock research services Boston Globe SEC Good at Fining, Bad at Collecting CFO ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- "There really hasn't been much balance sheet repair at all." Merrill (CNN) Confidence Jumps in April Conference Board U.S. Employment Costs Post Biggest Rise in 13 Years Dow Jones BLS In Limbo Morgan Stanley (Roach) The Debt Debate TheStreet Techs' Daring Dance on IT Cutting-Room Floor TheStreet (Fleck) The mythical second-half recovery CNN/Money Tech earnings growth will be explosive in the third and fourth quarter. Heard that one before? Personal income figures aren't so rosy once. . . CNN/Money “Can Do” Money 321Gold (Boner) Robert McTeer must be something of an amateur magician. His idea of a good time, we guess from his remark from February, is creating money out of thin air. The Real P/E Ratio Decision Point Three out of four Californians say times are bad SF Gate Study: Venture Capital Investment Plunges AP Chip makers cut growth forecasts FT Industry Group May Be Too Cheery About Chips TheStreet Callers to new American Air CEO dial up sex hotline Reuters China weighs closing exchanges to fight virus IHT (Bloomberg) Chinese banks quarantine cash SMH Gloom persists for German firms BBC Why Europe's Bear Market Is Worse Than America's Bloomberg Ericsson to Cut as Many as 13,000 More Jobs on Losses Bloomberg Steelmaker Corus Cuts 1,150 Jobs in U.K. AP Pensions warning by World Bank Irish Examiner Shares sink on Argentine election fears BBC Monday April 28 Beware of weak numbers Money/CNN How much disappointment can the market take? Wall Street is about to find out. Economic Growth Data Forged In Secret Reuters Where is the "money" in your "money market" fund? 321Gold There really is a simple way to expense options MSN (Fleck) Dollar Is Poised to Fall Versus Euro for 4th Week, Survey Shows Bloomberg Banks eager to take punishment FT Detailing the damage IHT (NYT) SEC to Approve $1.4 B Settlement With Brokerages on Biased Research AP Citigroup set to be heavily regulated FT Blodget Bared Reuters Feds Struggle to Prosecute Top Executives TheDeal Pathetic savings rate hurts case for tax cut Philly Inquirer Technology, markets and investment BrookesNews (Jackson) Making It All Add Up, Again WP The planned restatement at Freddie Mac shows a fundamental truth about accounting that companies across the Washington area and across the country have grappled with in the past year: Accounting is both art and science. Option cutbacks not helpful AP All that's really happening is that fewer options are being given to average workers. Executives are largely unaffected. Average pay is dropping for first time since 1980s NYT (No R) Epinet The jobless trap: Some settle for little, or give up Seattle Times The number of so-called "underemployed" -- those forced to take part-time or low-paying jobs -- has grown 41 percent nationwide since the recession started two years ago. Very High Spirits Cross Currents Market Stalls At Resistance Lines Gold-Eagle Buffett's late bid for Northumbrian Water FT Is the Big Board Getting Creaky? NY Times (R) Morgenson IRS Charges Offshore-Banking Expert AP Where the Boys Are NYP (Bryon) What about some applause for three lousy CEOs who've gotten a pass for no other apparent reason than that they are women? Tracking down the billions of dollars the energy crisis cost California SF Gate As good as GOLD Sunday Times Another fresh 20-Year Low Mainichi China Cuts GDP Growth Forecasts Because of SARS Dow Jones No Quick Fix Stagecoach says SARS hits HK bus unit Reuters German Business Confidence Unexpectedly Fell in April Bloomberg House prices fall for first time in 18 months FT Three pillars of economic consensus starting to give way Independent Swiss Central bank warns downturn could get worse Swiss Info Iraq's banks, currency in tatters USA Today Customers Count on Abacus After Bank Run Newsday Weekend Edition (April 26-27) Bush to say soon that war is over AP Betting on debt: Will Iraq pay up? IHT Institutional investors have begun wagering that an occupied Iraq can pay the hefty bills Saddam Hussein has rung up during the past two decades. Traditional pension plans coming up short LA Times The Real Mutual Fund Statistics Comstock The mutual fund redemptions that have taken place, haven’t even wiped out the total purchases of equity mutual funds since the bear market started. R.I.P. Great Bear? Zeal Reliquefication Prudent Bear (Noland) Investing: Faith Versus History Investors Insight Failed Economic Policies, in 86 Words Conservative Financial How Greenspan and Wall Street Misled Investors Dropping Dead? NewsWeek New York City faces its worst fiscal crisis since the mid-1970s US Regulators To Document Conflicts On Wall St Monday Dow Jones (WP) Financial star Warren Buffett a big hit in Fort Bend County Houston Chronicle NC Textile Mill That Inspired Movie 'Norma Rae' to Close, Lay Off 320 AP Costs for bad loans climb 1.3 trillion yen Japan Times The economy in shambles, bitter Argentines to choose new president AP Friday April 25 Advanced 1Q03 GDP Up 1.6% BEA American Airlines chief quits as bankruptcy looms AP Deflation -- Needs To Be Treated With Respect LongBoat NABE Industry Survey Panel: The Soft Patch Gets a Little Softer NABE Capital spending fell for the eighth consecutive quarter -- extending the longest stretch of declines in the survey’s 21-year history. ”The cost of capital exceeds the return on capital” AP Policy Blunder Morgan Stanley (Roach) Lies, damned lies and earnings reports MSN Don't read too much into overachieving first-quarter results. Most of the cheery numbers aren't sustainable or repeatable Interview With Richard Duncan (The Dollar Crisis) Business In Asia Accounts watchdog backed over derivatives rules FT The US standard setter, FASB, gave a thinly veiled warning that dilution of the IASB's rules could damage efforts to harmonise US and international accounting standards When U.S. cooks books KC Star Those outraged by the accounting shenanigans at Enron, WorldCom and HealthSouth should save some of their outrage for the U.S. government. Greenspan: Fannie, Freddie Merit Close Eye Reuters States Making Deep Budget Cuts Stateline Spending hits high USA Today A Long Hot Summer For Option Expensing Forbes Intel gives options to staff, executives CBS MarketWatch Yesterday Mr. Barlett, who does not believe options are an expense, received 350,000 options (bringing his total to 5.8 million), and two days ago he argued that FASB was being ‘disingenuous’... Does the Board Have a Backbone? Forbes Buy this rally? Not me MSN As a hedge-fund manager I know that one of the best-kept secrets about bear market rallies is that very often, it is the worst fundamental stories that perform best when investors begin to believe that the economic cycle has turned for the better. A Conversation With Robert Shiller Smart Money Merrill Lynch has taken out the ax yet again NY Post Eletropaulo default FT Bankrupt Allou Cops to Errors, Fires Execs NYP Sara Lee Shares Tumble 9.8%, Biggest Drop in Almost 15 Years NY Times (R) Revlon Posts 18th Straight Loss NYP Microsoft sees flat economy Reuters Riverstone says SEC requests accounting info Reuters Is Big Pharma the next target for attack? Economist New Accounting Board, SEC in Dispute Washington Post SEC Probes Wall Street Executives WP Citigroup's Weill, Others Scrutinized on Controls Soros looks for life after Soros FT Mary Meeker, the One Still Standing Bloomberg Consolidated banking statistics for the fourth quarter of 2002 BIS Big Mac Index Reuters (Economist) Pension funds shun UK shares Times Online (Graphic) - Russell/Mellon Caps Hotel group (IHT) to shed 800 jobs BBC Germany's biggest bank takes 1bn euro hit Guardian Dutch miracle breaks down BBC Business community fed up with Koizumi Yomiuri Another 20 Year Low U.S. Economic Prescriptions Still Failing in Latin America CEPR S&P cuts Philippines long-term debt rating IHT (Bloomberg) Guidelines on exchange traded interest rate derivatives Reserve Bank of India Derivatives only for hedging -- “Trading position in futures is not allowed.” World’s First hydrogen filling station Guardian Poll: 56% think the country is now in a recession AP It's the jobs, stupid CNN/Money Bush criticizes Senate's 'little-bitty' tax-relief proposal WT “The Bush administration was loath to allow the recession to happen and kept imposing policies designed to end it but that actually end up prolonging it.” Interview with Morgan O. Reynolds Bank Run For 3rd Straight Day AP Failed Financial Institutions FDIC Thursday April 24 U.S., N. Korea talks near collapse MSNBC OPEC moves to cut output CBS WTO warns Sars could halt trade revival Inde WTO World Bank warns of Sars effect BBC World Bank US economy starting to feel effect of SARS AFP SARS will weaken 2Q03 growth, says Bank of Canada CP WHO warns against travel to Toronto AP SARS Piles on the Pain in Asia Business Week Help Wanted Index Conference Board (10:00 AM) U.S. Initial Jobless Claims Rose by 8,000 Last Week to 455,000 Bloom DOL March Durable Orders Jump by 2% Census U.S. probes fraud at 130 firms Bloomberg "I expect that criminal charges will result from a majority of the investigations" Time to Target Inflation AEI (Makin) Ironically, the best hope for the intermediate term would be a sharp drop in the U.S. stock market... Destroying an Economy to Save It Ludwig von Mises The non-confirming Dow CBS MarketWatch The Dow could resolve this non-confirmation any day by closing above 8,521.97. But it better do so soon if the rally is to be sustainable... Talk of jobs a slogan, not a policy KC Star (NYT - Krugman) Has refinancing wave crested? CS Monitor Last year, the dollar amount for refinancing totaled $1.46 trillion - more than President Bush's original proposal for a tax cut. Treasury Supply Isn't the Key to Rates Bloomberg The Treasury never has trouble selling its platter of bills, notes and bonds. The only variable is the price. At Big Board, a Disturbing Investigation of a Lesser Sin NYT (R) (Morgenson) Last year, according to Nasdaq officials, investors met without an intermediary in 57 percent of trades. Dealers were involved in 43 percent of trades.Meanwhile, the trend at the Big Board seems to be in the opposite direction. NYSE Cheating is Nothing New NYP (Crudele) Grasso: Kill the Messenger Nasdaq may be obsolete, stock watchers say AP The next outrage in CEO pay? CNN/Money Boards Don’t Get It KC Star As their stock options become worthless, executives are loading up on restricted stock. Shareholders ask Wells to expense options SF Business Times S.Y. Bancorp Knight Ridder fends off proposal to expense options AP GE shareholders reject proposals for pay scrutiny AP Embattled Janus fund tops Fabian's 'Lemon List' CBS MarketWatch Bursting of dot-com bubble proved death knell for analysts ‘playtime’ Times On How things turned sour for the new ‘Masters of the Universe’ SEC Given More Time on Accounting Papers AP Quattrone - Becker Profits sag at U.S. fund firms amid stock slump Reuters AMR loss raises concern about cash position USA Today EDS eyes asset sales, job cuts Reuters Dow Chemical 1st-Qtr Profit Falls 28% on Energy Costs Bloomberg AFC will restate 2000 earnings too AJC The Numbers Aren't the Story for Amazon TheStreet Borrowing £1bn higher than Budget forecast Times Online Graphic Church hit by stock market falls BBC What Can Greenspan Do? Comstock Economy Still Sags, Say the Fed Banks WP (Berry) Greenspan would remain Fed chief if asked FT Political suicide through Greenspan UPI Should Greenspan get another term? Globe & Mail (Ingram) “Two old hats who know a few tricks about stocks--Warren Buffett and John Bogle--say the U.S. equity markets are headed for a long period of underperformance.” Forbes Wednesday April 23 “It looked like a colorized newsreel from the Depression” NY Times (R) Fed’s Beige Book FED NYC residents rush Chinatown bank again AP Hundreds rush bank in Philadelphia's Chinatown AP Action News Many of the customers are taking money out of the bank in big bundles.The Philadelphia branch has run out of cash.... Will World Bank, IMF botch Iraq? CNNfn Iraq’s oilfields flowing again AP U.S. Multinationals Wary of Backlash ABC Foreign Aid, Foreign Disaster Ludwig von Mises Few countries around the world wanted to be in the War on Iraq, but now everyone seems eager to participate in reconstruction. Bowling Green economist predicts dark era for world market BG Daily The rest of the world talks about the U.S. being the global economic engine and that’s true. But it’s an engine that’s running on an unsustainable fuel source. Alan Greenspan Is No William McChesney Martin Forbes Rumor Sparks Panic at Bank Newsday Early 1930s: “Runs” on banks Prediction: The future of the USA stock market Sornette - UCLA Wages, inflation and Reserve Bank myths BrookesNews (Jackson) S&P: Corporate defaults down but remain above avg Reuters Board Backs Rules Change on Stock Options Washington Post The accounting standards board attempted to mandate an expensing policy in 1993 but backed down after Congress threatened to strip it of its power. Some members of Congress are again trying to stop the effort. Intel CEO: Options Taint Results Reuters Mortgage applications at year low Reuters MBAA Hot housing market might be cooling USA Today No takers for homes Rocky Mountain News Single-family home permits at 7-year low Orange County Register Bankruptcy for California? KFWB The state could begin writing IOU's to pay the bills if lawmakers don't nail down a fiscal budget and the state technically runs out of money in a few weeks. Where has foreign money gone? AP Venture capitalists hit Skid Row SF Gate State unemployment climbs to 7% Seattle Times Ultra-discounters lead retail pack Sac Bee Jubilant Kmart exits bankruptcy BBC ESL investments, a $5bn hedge fund, has now become the largest shareholder in Kmart, with a 49% stake. American Airlines on verge of bankruptcy Washington Times Lucent Posts 12th Straight Quarterly Loss Reuters GM To Cut Saturn Production Reuters Prices of used luxury cars tumble WSJ Alcoa to cut jobs, production at smelters Reuters More Proof - gold market manipulation FreeMarket Britain is fast being transformed into a nation of debtors Independent BBC exposes "poor" financial advice BBC Germany set for budget overhaul as taxes fall short FT Threat of Downgrade 5 German banks set plan to pool loans IHT (NYT) 19.8 per cent of Hong Kong adults owns stocks Hoovers (Standard) Zimbabwe fears weak tobacco crop BBC Wall St crusader warns of 'flood of investor claims' Times Online NYSE says probe not focused on "front-running" FT Investment banker arrested on obstructing investigation charge AP ABN Amro fined for ramping shares BBC Tuesday April 22 Bush Will Back Greenspan for Another Term Reuters Greenspan prostate surgery 'routine, successful' CBS War's end puts Greenspan theory to test Bloomberg US CREDIT OUTLOOK - New supply a test of demand Reuters Leading or Lagging? Comstock Leading Indicators Stock market bubbles and Adventure in Paradise BrookesNews (Jackson) More stocks targeted in NYSE trading probe WSJ The wrinkled whores of Wall Street Worldnetdaily The PPT has failed in its valiant, but hopeless 4-month effort to extend the October rally, and the time to abandon ship is now. Depth of debts TC Palm Mortgage activity rescues economy Orlando Sentinel The biggest surge of home refinancings in U.S. history, now headed for a third consecutive record year, is having a profound effect on an economy otherwise racked by recession, terrorism and war. Offshore outsourcing grows Atlanta Business Chronicle The information GAAP CBS MarketWatch Web P/E multiples have lost their meaning Counting up the toll from the Silicon Valley technology bust Toronto Star Seven of every 10 Silicon Valley companies that Wall Street first sold to the public during the technology boom are now dead or valued at less than half their initial price. Here’s My Plan to Inject Some Life into the Economy NY Post (Crudele) Education cuts draw protests around nation AP Struggling firms fear D List abyss Boston Globe 'Money market' doesn't always mean safe investment St. Petersburg Times Senator Demands SEC Spills Terms of Banks’ Deal NY Post SEC Expands Probe of AOL Ad Deals Reuters Broker misled me, analyst tells OSC hearing Toronto Star “This risk analysis you're doing, the whole thing breaks down if the broker misleads you?” American's CEO: 'I'm sorry' CNNfn Why UK economy is a time bomb waiting to explode Independent UK house prices fall again BBC Beware this nasty economic virus Times Online Severe acute recession syndrome. A highly infectious virus is sweeping the UK. Scottish Water cuts 900 jobs BBC Yen-selling by Japanese may accelerate - analysts Reuters The economic fallout from SARS Business Week Smaller Swiss firms hit hard by economic woes Swiss Info Argentine protesters torch cars after eviction ABC Toronto companies cancel, delay projects as paranoia grows T-Star. Monday April 21 “American Airlines faces bankruptcy concerns again this week...” Reuters Greenspan To Undergo Prostate Surgery FED Snow to offer tax-cut compromise Reuters Treasury Secretary would delay dividend tax break Dreamcatchers Morgan Stanley (Roach) The dream merchants are hard at work peddling the tale of another economic revival. Hype, hope, wishful thinking -- and more hype MSN (Fleck) The rally unfolding since March is fantasy built on corporate spin and half-truths, foisted on an investing public that's ready to believe. Keep your guard up. A Mounting Deficit of Responsibility Business Week Rethinking Buy-and-Hold NewsWeek Sure, stocks have performed well over the long term. But when everyone seizes on the same investing strategy, it quits working as well. Exploiting the Delusions of Money GoldenBar India Gold-Demand booms as wedding bells toll Reuters Deutsche settles in for a long bear market FT The world is only at the beginning of a long bear market that could last for 10 - possibly 20 - years. The staying power of an odd recession FT Can the Dow's 'pennant' keep waving? CBS MarketWatch Dow can't continue its rally without help Bulls suddenly outnumber bears in unusual rebound NY Times Service Cash flows into risky junk bonds AP Rigid style rules for funds sometimes prevent prudent moves to cash SF Gate The 401(k) has hit hard times US News Only 11% of American workers contributing the maximum (to 401Ks) EBRI Silicon Valley view: Industry still waits for sign of recovery Mecury News Recession changed business travel forever USA Today Shiller Has Stock Doubts Bloomberg Unemployment Numbers Don't Tell Entire Story, Report Says BostonChannel SEC’s Agora-Phobia NY Post Thanks to the Internet, the use of fraudulent and deceptive newsletter promotions to pump up worthless stocks has spread like the SARS virus. US heads for UK-style accounting rule FT Credit Card Touted As Way to Save Money AP Fiscal follies imperil states and cities Tallahasse Democrat Alabama classrooms are about to get a little more crowded Huntsville Times BOJ plan may dry up debt market IHT (Bloomberg) Evasive accounting will darken already cloudy economic outlook Japan Times Sars could kill the HK dollar peg Business Times Singapore leader warns of an economic 'crisis' IHT (Bloomberg) Virus May Be Biggest Enemy Of China's Economy SinChew China fires officials over Sars cover-up FT Canadian Futures Pit May Ditch Yelling Reuters Weekend Edition (April 18-20) Saddam Shows up on EBay Star Tribune Iraqi currency to get facelift The Age Baghdad's banks stripped as US soldiers stand by Inde U.S. Marines Guard $1B in Gold in Iraq AP Another Iraq deal rewards company with connections USAT Black Gold Harris Capital OPEC wants $25 a barrel crude. The US wants $10 a barrel crude. Who is going to win? Iraq could achieve 40% of prewar oil production in 7 weeks, officials say AP Commodity hedge funds change from bulls to bears FT A new world order Economist The True Cost of Hegemony: Huge Debt NY Times (R) Foreign investors now hold about two-fifths of the federal debt in private hands â€” double the proportion they held 10 years ago. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Boldly Defending Their Options in a Penitent Age NY Times (R) Smart investing memo KC Star Less than a quarter of investors would pick stocks if given $3,000 to invest for retirement... Reaganomics are back - but don't add up Observer Federal deficit running nearly twice last year's pace AP Treasury Huge deficit undermines Bush's tax cut plans Guardian US still in recession? Depends on definition Strait Times Does a Falling Money Stock Cause Economic Depression? Ludwig Von Mises Trading The Relative VIX Zeal Firing on Most Cylinders Prudent Bear (Noland) The truth behind the 1990s boom BrookesNews (Jackson) Rally is a red flag to a bear market Sydney Morning Herald $4.7 Trillion Of Cash On The Sidelines - Might It Stay There? N-Trust Understanding Stock Market Behavior Frontlinethoughts (Mauldin) Tech's Seed Money Is Drying Up TheStreet Tech outlook still murky Globe & Mail State seeks jobless benefits cut Boston Globe Janus Exodus Leaves Investors Holding an Empty Bag NY Post Prime Bank Scams Making A Comeback CT Now Gateway earnings hit by fall in PC shipments FT US Airways to lay off 890 flight attendants Reuters Delta Loss Widens, Bookings Still Weak Reuters American brass say they'll forgo bonuses Fort Worth 1,030 Boeing workers in area warned of layoff Seattle Times ImClone Battling Delisting NYP Easter ranks 2nd in money spent on holiday IndyStar NYSE probing specialist firms Boston Globe All in the Family Traders May Have Acted Illegally WP SEC to look at NYSE policies Reuters Culture of Loopholes Bred Corporate Abuse WP Tricks of the 1990s Are Focus of Accounting Reform Wall Street Firms Near Settlement WP Deal on Reforms Could Come Next Week Singapore cuts 2003 growth forecast to 0.5%-2.5% TheStar Virus `may tip HK into recession' Standard Thursday April 17 Flight Attendants Accept Pay Cuts WP Vote Keeps American Out of Bankruptcy Jobless Claims at 442K CNN/Money DOL Mid-Atlantic Factory Output Weak in April Reuters Philadelphia Fed Twin deficits fallacy returns Brookesnews (Jackson) A Deficit, Any Way It Is Sliced NY Times (R) More tech horror CNN/Money The suits inside the battledress Economist Is collusion between government and big business increasing in America? Pension shortfalls drain firms' cash USA Today The unrelenting bear market forced top-tier U.S. companies to pour cash into their sagging pension plans last year, and the financial pain will only worsen if stocks don't stage a lasting rebound soon. Pension Deficits Could Cost Firms Billions WP In America, top-level compensation actually rose last year Economist The Greater Fool Theory: The Bubble Is Back Financial Sense General Mortgage Corporation Prudent Bear Honeywell: Accounting change will trim '03 EPS Reuters 3,000 more jobs to be cut at Motorola Arizona Republic Skepticism greets 'best stock research' list USA Today 9 of the top 10 individual analysts work at firms that do investment banking. Floor trader is removed amid probe by NYSE FT Indonesia May Dump Dollar; Rest of Asia Too? Bloomberg UK housing market weakest since 1995 FT Alarm as UK recovery stalls BBC Tobishima returns to banks for 30 billion yen bailout Japan Times Japan hedge fund returns assets to clients FT HSBC Cuts Hong Kong GDP Growth Forecast To 0.5% Vs 1.6% Dow Jones Zimbabwe sinks into crisis One Business Wednesday April 16 French Businesses Say U.S. Boycott Is Hurting Them WP Consumer Confidence Soars ABC Some Peace Activists Won't Pay Fed Taxes ABC US fines sanctions-busting firms BBC Some of America's best known corporations have been fined by the US Treasury for busting sanction laws to trade with countries such as Iraq, Libya and Cuba. Sony drops 'shock and awe' request CBS MarketWatch ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Small companies too scared to hire USA Today NFIB Just 1% of 555 firms surveyed say they plan to add workers... Making money like crazy is fun for the pessimist, too SunSpot From fearful to fearless CNN/Money Banks' dangerous wager CNN/Money Still in the Bear's Grip Business Week (S&P) Why investors are getting overly bullish in a secular bear market, and one that has gone sideways since July, 2002, is beyond our comprehension. Toxic cocktail woe for global equities FT (Merrill Survey) Bearish on $ Average cash balances fell sharply in last month to 4.6 per cent from 5.4 per cent. Stocks: Little room to zoom (Part II) CBS MarketWatch Kangus: "I think the best investment right now is cash" Detroit Free Press OPEC production cuts coming, but how much? Houston Chronicle Mortgage Requests Fall in April 11 Week AP How Long the Slump Forbes we're talking about sharply cutting hours or even closing plants at General Motors, Ford and Chrysler. GE jet engine unit to cut jobs AP Tellabs posts loss, cuts 665 jobs CBS MarketWatch Northwest wants machinist pay, job cuts AP Intel sales flatter than a pancake The Register Intel Warns FT Prudential raises price of healthcare cover FT Altria first-quarter profit falls Reuters Colleges turn to hedge funds Boston Globe Burned by market, boomers turn to bonds Gwinette Daily Post 'Sad' Bloomberg Seeks $1 Billion in Budget Cuts WP West Virginia among 47 states facing significant fiscal concerns Wheeling News Legislators' cowardice is showing (Kansas) KC Star Birmingham Faces Financial Crisis NBC Fiscal crisis sparks City Hall spat Fitchburg, MA Employees are "looking over their shoulder" and wondering "Who's next?" The number of teacher layoffs (31) was higher than expected Daily Tribune 642 - 590 - 162 - 160 - 70 - 50 - 6 Baseball attendance flagging Houston Chronicle A Big Bad Board NY Post Germany's economic misery won't ease soon AP Revival body to buy 7.3 trillion yen in banks' loans Japan Times Authorities out of ideas as stocks continue to plummet Asahi HK travel firms 'face collapse' BBC Central bank pulls trigger, raises key rate again Globe & Mail Only central bank in a major industrialized country to tighten the reins so far this year. Standard Life defends executive bonuses Scotsman Reuters chairman defends chief executive's £610,000 bonus Times Online Tuesday April 15 American Airlines Attendants Reject Plan WP American CEOs deserve no glory Toronto Star This is not an hour of patriotic glory for CEOs... U.S. hints at applying sanctions on Syria IHT Industrial Production off 0.5% in March FED Fund manager predicts another depression Knight Ridder Should we hang the analysts? Knight Ridder Washington Needs to Stop Being Fiscally Irresponsible NY Post Congress Exceeds Its Credit Limit Texas Straight Talk (Paul) Don't Get Fooled Again Smart Money Those who don’t remember history are condemned to buy the latest weak excuse for sorry earnings. Some Earnings Estimates May Be Off-Base WP Buyer Beware Smart Money Still trying to teach Wall St. Philly Inquirer Bear Market Far From Over Comstock What `Special Ops' Is Greenspan Contemplating? Bloomberg The Fed is Flying Blind LewRockwell Corporate Balance Sheet Repair -- Still a Work in Progress Morgan Stanley You'd hardly know it from the way that corporate bond spreads have narrowed over the past five months, but corporate credit quality remains a critical issue for investors. Watch out, the deficit is gaining Business Week Economists: Unsold goods piled up in Feb AP Census Empire factory survey gloomy CNN/Money NY manufacturing index, often early indicator of wider trends, at lowest level since October '01. Credit Bureaus Exposed Fortune Many CEOs still reap riches despite slump BG Janus defends pay disclosure Have They No Shame? Fortune High Pay, Rotten Returns (Top 12) Their performance stank last year, yet most CEOs got paid more than ever. Here's how they're getting away with it. CEO Pensions: The Latest Way to Hide Millions Fortune J.P. Morgan Is Notified by SEC of Possible Action DJ GM tops 1Q target, warns on '03 CNN/Money Mortgage Lending Again Saves GM TheStreet First-quarter loss reported by Continental Airlines AP Apple Gets Bruised in Arab-Israel Fight NYP Has Jobs Gone Insane? G&M Court Grants MO Request for Bond Reduction DJ MO To Change Wording Shareholder suit accuses AOL of insider trading FT AOL Sues Spammers Some Days you Feel Like a Nut . . . Washington Dispatch Today we mourn the passing of an old friend - Common Sense Poor Imprudent Brown Smithers Pensions and Investment - Taking the fund out of pensions Hoovers (FT) Return of capital fears boosts the euro FT Markets in Asia hit by SARS SF Gate Growing the economy - instead of milking it Scotsman “The pre-announcement and estimate revision patterns of the last two weeks now have us leaning toward expecting another round of estimate slashing that pushes the step up in earnings growth back another six months...” Chuck Hill ~ Earnings Outlook Monday April 14 Shares are overvalued FT Order due later Monday in Philip Morris case-judge Reuters Fast running out of wriggle room Scotsman After the war, can we win peace and prosperity? MSN (Fleck) Focus Turns Towards Greenspan’s Bunker NY Post Victory Is No Panacea NW Postwar spending boom may not materialize AP Iraq's debt burden too big for broke economy to bear CS Monitor The mother of all tax cuts CBS MarketWatch End of Saddam gives U.S. an OPEC vote Postwar bounce? Maybe not CS Monitor Charting the long run CBSM Gold/US $ Safe Haven Embry digs in on gold FP A dollar invested in gold would now be worth $462,502 in 1801 dollars...By contrast, a dollar bill kept under the mattress would be worth only 7 cents in 1801 dollars. The market's next worry? CNN/Money Global investors appear to like U.S. assets less and less. Larry Ellison sees bleak future for technology WSJ Retailers take charge to cope with downturn The Oregonian VCs: The Dry Season CFO Funds shouldn't have lost 38% JS Online Losing Altitude USNews The 401(k) has hit hard times, as account balances fall, companies cut back, and workers grow disenchanted. Boomers good at saving, but not good enough KC Star SEC Warns Morgan Stanley It May Face Charges Dow Jones SEC seeks to curb state regulators FT Congress to investigate SEC's role in policing credit ratings FT Would greater competition in the credit rating agency business improve the reliability of ratings? Investors soured by stocks find new treasure in junk LA Times “Buffett sprinkled holy water on the whole thing” Are cash-strapped states addicted to tobacco? NY Post Flying lessons (Concorde) Financial Post Former UK chancellor warns of housing bubble FT “I suspect that [Mr Brown] is concerned that his implausible economic forecasts will be undermined by the bursting of the housing market.” Investors step up 'fat cat' protest Times Online Euro referendum this year, says Mandelson Telegraph Is the European Rally a Bear Trap? Business Week German outlook seen falling FT Japan's Nikkei Slides to 2-Decade Low Bloomberg Japan's bank malaise infects whole economy FT Sars 'not under control', Hong Kong chief admits FT U.S. tech industry feels side effects of virus USA Today Disney and airlines admit Sars is crippling business Independent Hong Kong airline dives on SARS fears BBC Cathay may ground fleet Reuters “Biggest economic threat to East Asia since the 1997-98 financial crisis” USAT CEOs rethink China investments Taipei Times “In a sign of either confidence or stupidity, April could be the first month this year in which equity funds see a net inflow of money.” TheStreet Weekend Edition (April 12-13) G-7 Agrees That Iraq Needs Help With Debt WP The War Goes Well. So Where's the Dividend? NY Times (R) The slump in technology spending began in fall 2000 - long before troops headed to Iraq and about a year before 9/11. Iraq a field of dreams for big oil firms Globe & Mail Iraq work for Cheney's old firm may be huge AP Fighting, In Dollars And Cents WP “A lot of people don't realize that the [$364 billion] we spend on the military a year is just a retainer. If you want to use the armed forces, you have to pay even more." After Iraq: the Real World of Earnings Frontline US-Europe Iraq row threatens trade talks Guardian Blix: US was bent on war Guardian ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Next Time, Follow the Spenders, Not the Talkers NY Times (R) (Morgenson) Stock market strategists are often wrong, of course, and not only because they are human. Divided Economic Advice and the Lure of Politics NY Times (R) The US Dollar Bear Zeal The Reasons Prudent Bear (Noland) Deflation-Bait Market Wise NYC Haunted By Busted Budgets AP Mayor Michael Bloomberg is preparing "doomsday" contingency plans The Pension Chasm WP Disparity Between CEOs, Workers Under Scrutiny As Carriers Sought Help, Top Tier's Pay Soared WP Yahoo drawing too many cheers Globe & Mail Vanguard sues Citigroup units Houston Chronicle Tokyo's Nikkei Set to Test 7,500 Reuters Pensions 'at turning point' BBC EU's Solbes: U.S. Twin Deficits a Concern Reuters But we're not out of the woods yet Guardian The market bounced back from the Depression and the great oil shock. Will it recover after the dotcom crash? Rumours fuel run on ICICI Bank in Gujarat for 2nd day Times of India “There is no crisis in the bank and cash has been arranged if people want to withdraw" Friday April 11 U.S. faces chaos after fall of Saddam Reuters War Profiteers Texas Straight Talk (Paul) The Joy of Looting Ludwig Von Mises The bigger threat still lurking - Economies after the war Hoovers (Economist) The bad news is that the world economy was extremely weak when the Iraq war started. In all the world's big economies, the most recent statistics have shown little but gloom. Halliburton oil field deal raises questions USA Today Houston-based Halliburton could make $490 million for Iraq oil field work under an Army contract awarded without competition last autumn. Sony looks to patent term "Shock and Awe" for a computer game Guardian ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ The Bubble, Deflation, and Implications for Real Estate Comstock Dueling Surveys Cloud U.S. Employment Picture WP (Berry) Shoulder to Shoulder with the IMF Morgan Stanley (Roach) More workers can't afford to retire USA Today PDF Release Sluggish month for retail bellwethers Wal-Mart, Target Star Tribune Retail Sales Surge 2.1 Percent in March Reuters PPI up 1.5% Casino revenues fail to grow at March's usual strong pace KC Star US Corp Bond-Weak on selling; airlines ratings slashed Reuters GM CEO Warns of Weakening Demand Reuters Cisco grants more stock options CBS MarketWatch GE will need big second half to meet forecast Reuters Anger may derail American offer USA Today Bankruptcy Risk State Street Set to Cut Up to 1,800 Jobs Reuters Boeing to take $1.2 billion charge Reuters Fires 260 workers, citing slow sales of military aircraft Janus accused of hiding info Rocky Mountain News Ebbers invested in WorldCom after ouster USA Today Bank Adds A $5 Fee To Cash Paychecks WP FASB to Look at Pension Accounting CFO Mining Pensions' Silver Lining for Stocks TheStreet A Plan to Recalculate Pensions NY Times (R) orporations would find billions of dollars of pension shortfalls eliminated overnight under a proposal being prepared to address a longstanding issue in pension accounting. Tokyo's Nikkei ends at 20-yr low Reuters Japan investment trust value lowest in 16 years Reuters Brown 'likely to break his golden rule on borrowing' Times Online Thursday April 10 Stocks Plunge Along With Saddam's Statue Comstock Does Capitalism Require War? Ludwig Von Mises Victory may not defeat economic doubt AJC “Americans want to believe that we will return to normal. The rest of the world says, 'that wasn't normal, that was just the 10-year period when you were so dominant.'” "The war euphoria is coming out of the market" USA Today The Reality of War Marc Faber ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Jobless Claims Stuck Above 400K CBS Trade Gap at $40.3 Bloom Census The Perils of Deflation Gold-Eagle Booms and busts and the American economy BrookesNews (Jackson) West may fall in economic might CS Monitor Baghdad's Fall Is Honey To The Bears Forbes No Global Rally Soon, IMF Says Washington Post Economic Assessment Douses Rebound Hopes IMF Blames U.S., Others for Economy Woes AP Transcript CEOs Offer Bleak View on Economy Reuters Private Economists Gloomier on Growth Reuters (Blue Chip) Credit quality eases in first quarter FT Retail Sales Stank; Here Are The Excuses NY Post British Airways, Air France End Concorde Reuters Ariba Says Restates Nearly All Results Reuters Network Associates Posts Loss, Cuts View Reuters Nokia to shed 1,800 staff at networks unit FT SunTrust's Earnings Show Squeeze TheStreet Microsoft to cut price of Xbox in Europe FT S&P cuts Altria Group and units, may cut further Reuters Meat company bankrupt Honolulu Advertiser Bear To Pay $20 Million to Settle Blech Suit NYP House Panel Tells SEC It Will Subpoena Papers WP Banking and Financial Stability: A Workshop on Applied Banking Research BIS Gold Rally Back Over $350 Expected in Second Half 2003 Gold Fields PDF Britain cuts its forecast for growth IHT Commentary: Expect Hong Kong to put the currency issue on hold Bloomberg It's Chapter 11 for Allou Newsday Sars hits Hong Kong growth BBC South Korean Banker Warns of More Scandals NY Times (R) Are Asian central banks easing up on derivatives? Reuters New Zealand Business Confidence Falls to 17-Year Low Bloomberg Massive US$2b needed to ease hard cash crisis Gazette (Zimbabwe) Wednesday April 9 Iraqis Celebrate As U.S. Takes Baghdad AP Saddam Doesn't Control Baghdad, U.S. Says AP Dead or Alive? WT/Guardian Procedures on Iraq Contracts Draw Fire on Hill WP War means more orders for military toys AP American Air could bankrupt if workers don't approve plan AP Qantas to cut 1,000 more jobs FT Bush Wants Aid Limited Big airlines have eliminated 10,000 jobs and thousands of flights since the start of the war. That came on top of the 100,000 jobs and wholesale schedule and fleet cuts the industry imposed after the 2001 hijack attacks. Airlines: Good Money After Bad Economist The Cost of an Empire YaleOnline Why America Cannot Afford its Foreign Commitments without Drastically Changing its Domestic Policy Spring brake CBS MarketWatch (Kellner) The percentage of people out of work for six months or longer is at one of its highest points in the past 50 years. Share prices and the so-called "wealth effect" BrookesNews (Jackson) Productivity per se is not the key to profits -- entrepreneurial forecasting, or decision-making ability, is. Weak Earnings Won't Sneak Past Investors TheStreet Weak Consumer Spending - Is It War Or Fundamental Issues? Northern Trust Praying for a bull market breakout Financial Post An elusive target: All bets are off until Dow stays above 200-day average Shaq Attack Pimco (Gross Speech) IMF Seen Cutting Global Growth Forecast Reuters Cabals, Conspiracies, Manipulations and other Market Machinations F Sense Weekly mortgage requests slip Reuters First wave of retiring boomers likely to face financial crunch AP Senate Eyes Hedge Fund Operations NY Post Silicon Valley housing sales drop as prices lose steam USA Today Goldman, CSFB Seen at Risk in IPO Suit Reuters Banks brace for $4B hit GE feels heat from Calpers over options FT Silicon Valley reins in options use FT S&P Revises GM's Outlook to Negative Reuters Verizon tells union layoffs are possible Boston Globe Tool Maker Stanley Works Cuts Jobs Reuters HealthSouth’s 3rd CEO Charged NYP Chrysler under profit pressure Reuters Porsche to cut production AP Buffett's Net bet on Amazon junk may yield treasure Bloomberg Music sales slide 7.2% in '02 Reuters When in doubt, sue somebody G&M Gloomy message for Europe as growth remains negligible FT Stock losses hit Japan electronics firms IHT (Bloomberg) Japan's New Economic Tack: Buying Debt NY Times (R) Keeping a monopoly on market manipulation IHT (B) Investors dealing in the world's second-largest economy are used to Tokyo tampering with markets, and doing little to disguise it. S&P issues warning to South Korean banks FT Deadly illness leaves Hong Kong's shops empty, as retailers plead for help AP Australia's Economy Set to Slow: Report Asia Pulse Tuesday April 8 US Fed piecing together emergency economy plan AP Nowhere to Turn Ludwig Von Mises Economic policymakers around the world are running out of tools to boost the flagging global economy... Is The PPT an ‘Urban Myth’? Gold-Eagle Those who toe the establishment line and adamantly deny the existence of the PPT are denying the logic of history... Checking the Bull's Vitals: Was Wall Street Listening? NY Post Economies begin march to recession Financial Post U.S. chain store sales down Reuters Honey, I Shrunk the Profits Fortune Accounting made a bad year look a whole lot worse. Manufacturing activity slipped in March; expectations somewhat stronger Rich Service Sector Revenues Move Sharply Lower Rich Fed Low Rates Could Take a Toll on Banks TheStreet Remember the Old Adage: Sell the News Comstock Software Stocks Ignore The Warnings CNN/Money Opec calls crisis meeting to cut production Independent Crude Higher FT Companies seeking software find buyer's market USA Today 2 U.S. Foodservice Suppliers Confirmed Wrong Payments Washington Post CSFB Bloodbath NY Post McDonald's to Cut Spending Reuters Sara Lee staff 'confirmed false data' FT Don't count your chickens yet Times Online The European Central Bank Presidency Is a Mess Bloomberg Undermined by a frantic push to boost shareholder returns FT Interpublic Group, the global marketing services company, was asked to restate its results last year. Not once, but four times. What was the problem? City watchdog sounds the death knell for soft commissions Independent NEC to announce revised earnings estimate Reuters Bush: Not Sure If Saddam Survived Attack AP Airstrike may have killed Saddam MSNBC Wall Street seen higher after Saddam strike FT War trims even more flights from airlines' rosters USA Today War, spending concerns mire the state in recession (Mass) Boston Iraq War Makes Real Estate Latest Economic Casualty Bloomberg The cold calculation of war Economist Monday April 7 Economic doomsday Asia Times The US economy is on the verge of collapse, and the whole world is going down with it. Amazon Business stinks, but don't blame the war MSN (Fleck) In fact, don't blame anyone except the execs who polished the numbers and the cheerleading bureaucrats who helped them do it. The Bear market isn't over... A Pessimist's Lament Morgan Stanley (Roach) Making the Case for Neutral Markets TheStreet There will be some secular bull rallies, but basically the statistics are saying that investing right now is a waste of time. Why the market might be heading for a new downturn Scotsman The stink of America rotting WorldNetDaily A New Bull Market - In Government Pimco Business travaillers Economist Death, war and pestilence. What next for corporate travel? Few stray from the flock Boston Globe Burned by the bubble, many investors continue to pour money into bonds despite ignorance of risks -- sort of resembles the stock run-up of the late '90s Disappointing Earnings May Stall Rally Bloomberg More job searchers just quit looking USA Today Executive pay is called 'totally out of line' with performance IHT (NYT) VCs: The Dry Season (Part I) CFO Inflow of cash into junk bonds sets a record Reuters California's schools to lay off 25,000 staff Independent NHL on Thin Ice NY Post Air Products earnings to be lower than estimates Reuters Banks in Asia grapple with SARS, worry about deals Reuters Reserve currency: will China be able to provide alternative? Dawn The dollar hegemony is a structural condition in the world of finance and trade in which the US produces dollars and the rest of the world produces things that dollars can buy. Brown to pin Budget blame on Eurozone Scotsman Borrowing to hit eight-year high Times Online Bad Loans In Europe May Differ WSJ Japan tries to figure out where it went wrong Times Online Weekend Edition (April 5-6) US begins the process of 'regime change' Observer U.S. Army Tanks Roll Into Iraqi Capital AP The Iraqi Time Bomb NY Times (R) The denial of economic reality that permeated Wall Street a few years ago has now migrated to Washington. War blamed for low profits Reuters War's challenges test small firms USA Today Earnings Season: Let The Blame Game Begin NY Post Al-Jazeera ties halted Boston Globe ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Treasury Plans Accounting Moves to Stay Under Debt Limit AP Bubble Trouble NY Post A Borrowing Deal Worthy of a Billionaire WP Advisers May Get Second Chance to Fail NYT (R) (Morgenson) Phantom Wealth Daily Reckoning The Plunge Protection Team Investor Insights Tapping the power of negative thinking IHT Reflation Watch or The Necessity of Diligent Observation Prudent Bear (Noland) Real Rates and Gold 4 Zeal Firms Are Willing to Pay Taxes on Fraudulent Earnings to Avoid Suspicion MBS Chaos in health care market breeds scams, hurts mom-and-pop businesses AP February's Semiconductor Export Plunges By 30% Korean Industry Update Philip Morris Asks Court to Lower Bond AP Citigroup Retires Historic 'Salomon' Name Reuters California: Wal-Mart to Suspend Gun Sales Reuters Regulators:Deutsche May Face Fraud Charges NY Post How Did Meeker Keep Her Day Job? NY Post Getting Messier NY Post Jean-Marie Messier, the disgraced former chief of Vivendi, could face insider trading charges New York Stock Exchange opening bell loses appeal Bloomberg Pru bosses cash in as shareholders fear dividend cut Guardian Europe steps up criticism of U.S. twin deficits Reuters Alert over rising debt Herald Sun Almost half Australia's gross foreign debt of $520 billion falls due every 90 days, making the country vulnerable to any future international debt crisis. Recession signals: Flashing yellow CNN/Money Friday April 4 Myers raises possibility of isolating Baghdad CNN Republican Guard Surrender Stirs Markets Reuters 2 Reports Show War Is Slowing Spending WP (Berry) War Exemption Limits Terrorism Insurance WP Global growth under pressure from war BBC Tough times for US economy BBC Anti-war protesters take aim at American brands USA Today ‘Brand-Defense’ PeopleSoft warns war will weigh on earnings FT Tracking Saddam's Billions Business Week Guess who's coming for dinars? IHT (Bloomberg) Speculators bet Iraqi currency will soar in value ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Fed Officials Ready Anti-Deflation Plan Reuters “As long as you're pumping out money at a faster rate then demand for money is rising you're going to stimulate spending. I think it would be kind of fun to fight deflation, actually” McTeer The Perils of Deflation Safe Haven The Global Double Dip Morgan Stanley (Roach) Jobs Report: Payrolls Drop By 108K BLS Why No Recovery? Ludwig Von Mises IMF sees chance of U.S. housing bust AP Fears of a steeper decline for the dollar IHT (NYT) Put it in a sock! UPI Consumers digging deep to save money Chicago Tribune Many former big spenders start to live life on cheap More Companies Cut 401K Contributions AP Global junk bond default rate falls to 6.9 pct-Moody's Reuters US junk bond funds pull in $1.2 billion in week Reuters Fund performance overall: Not so good USA Today Trading like lemmings CNN/Money 2002 Pay Raises Show Smaller Stock Option Grants Bloomberg At Least Six Firms Probed for Dealings With U.S. Foodservice WP Officials at Kraft Foods Inc., H.J. Heinz Co., General Mills Inc., Sara Lee Corp., ConAgra Foods Inc. and Tyson Foods Inc. all confirmed they had been contacted in the past week. ConAgra says signed off Ahold document errors-WSJ Reuters Philip Morris $12B Bond Ruling Will Stand AP Now Its ‘Fraud’ NY Post “This is a monster event” UBS’ Own Grubman NY Post Healthsouth Exec Admits Guilt NY Post SEC investigates Applied Digital Miami Herald Will S.E.C. Allow Shareholder Democracy? NY Times (R) SARS begins to disrupt business around world IHT (NYT) Virus Bleeding Asian Business WP Fraud? No, it was good policy Financial Post Thursday April 3 “We're going to sever the head of the serpent” US Has No Plans To Secure South - Soaring Tempatures - The Hunt for WMD - Aircraft Down - Murdoch: Respect Not Love - U.S. 6 Miles from S. Baghdad Reuters - U.S., Allies Clash Over Plan to Use Iraqi Oil Profits for Rebuilding WP “If the war succeeds, the United States may claim a legal right as an occupying power to sell the oil for the benefit of Iraq” - Oregon law would jail war protesters as terrorists Reuters - Out of Chapter 11 but not out of trouble FT - WH: Airlines' Aid Bid 'Excessive,' WP - Bush doctrine is risky business IHT - Survey: CEOs Support War UPI - Can Saddam's defeat offset lousy earnings? ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ “Morgan Stanley's chief economist in the United States, Stephen Roach, will formally advise clients Friday that he's forecasting a world recession in 2003.” CNN/Money ISM Non-Manufacturing Index at 47.9 (53.9 in Feb) ISM Jobless Claims Rose by 38,000 Last Week to 445,000 Bloomberg DOL What the world needs now ... CNN/Money ... is more than just love to help avert what could be a nasty worldwide recession. Yearlong Decline in Dollar Is Little Help on Trade Gap NY Times (R) Understanding the States' Budget Crisis Stateline Economic boogeymen flying below our war radar Arizona Republic NYSE Gets Kicked in its Seat as Leases go Begging NY Post Decreasing Prices Ignite a Sell-Off in Tobacco Bonds NY Times (R) The recent slide in tobacco bonds issued by the states has touched off a bout of panic selling among many investors and raised speculation about possible improper trading. Downbeat IDC revises IT forecast ENN Global spending on IT this year will not grow at levels previously predicted. Manufacturing outlook is grim, economist says AP Retirees on the edge Boston Globe Rising healthcare costs taking a big bite out of pension checks. Pension in Trouble? Motley Fool FDIC coverage hike passes House CBS MarketWatch Risks of bond investing could soon be apparent Star Tribune Firms ease up on dividend increases LA Times Falloff in March could reflect dashed hopes for Bush's tax-cut plan. Lawmakers Criticize SEC's Oversight... WP CFO Sues SEC CFO Rating agencies may lose status FT Outlook for tech jobs still gloomy SF Gate S.F. commercial rents fall SF Gate Prudential Securities temporarily halts its 401(k) match Star-Ledger Goldman Sachs to fire 100 staff in equities division Channelnewsasia States ready to sue Philip Morris Reuters Stock options to ease pain of concessions for American workers? AP Still Waiting for Corporate Reform Business Week The lessons of Enron-esque scandals haven't sunk in yet. Just look at the eye-popping new allegations of executive-suite malfeasance Tyco sues CFO for $400m FT Computer Sciences accounting fears slam shares Reuters China Accumulating Gold 321Gold (Russell) China: Externally or Internally Driven? Morgan Stanley (Roach) SARS triggers downgrade of Asian economic prospects G&M Malaysian economy seen vulnerable to SARS UPI Global fears heighten over mystery illness AP Fears in Tech Industry AP 80 Dead S. Korea Business Confidence Falls, `Crisis' Scenario B UK house price rises 'slowing' BBC France 'could breach' EU deficit rules FT Net redemptions hit Canadian funds again Globe & Mail Wharf loses safe-haven status on dividend cut South China Morning Post Morgan Stanley sees a baffling bear hug Business Standard (Bombay) “Several large-cap stocks are almost a decade away from their bubble peaks” Bad times for major players in Australia IHT (Bloomberg) “Stock markets surged on hopes that American and British forces are closing in on victory in Iraq, but the mood among business executives and consumers is sour.” NY Times (R) Wall Street rolls the dice CNN/Money Lately it seems like Wall Street has more bouts with amnesia than soap opera characters do. Wednesday April 2 Division of Iraqi Guard Said Destroyed AP Near Basra: Residents Say Hussein Loyalists in Full Control WP Impact of British Siege Described as Minimal First blows hit US economy BBC War slows mortgage activity CNN/Money A perfect geopolitical storm is brewing CBS MarketWatch Terror Could Trip the Postwar Market TheStreet War, Fear of New Illness Add to Airline Problems WP American to cut 2,500 pilots AP Which airlines will cut next? CNN/Money US Congress seeks $3.2bn war aid for airlines FT No Bailouts Palm Beach Ed War toll stirs fears of recession Times Online Saudi billionaire urges Arabs to stick by Wall St Times Online ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Back to basics CBS MarketWatch (Kellner) Market could retest October lows CBS MarketWatch Debt worries spread IHT (Bloomberg) Economists: Data may cause Fed to cut rates 1/2 point USA Today ”The consumer is caving in” Boston Globe IPOs Hit 28-Year Low In the First Quarter WP CEOs Who Raise Dividends Become Investors' Heroes Bloomberg Fannie's Big Rate Bet Isn't Paying Off TheStreet Home foreclosures soar 38% Denver State bankruptcies jump 26% NJ’s commercial office market continued to nose dive in 1Q03 Star Ledger WHouse Signals Flexibility on Tax Package Reuters Gateway to Amend Financial Reports WP More annual reports delayed USAT SEC Had Raised Concerns Over AOL Deal Berkshire Hathaway to Buy Clayton Homes Reuters CMS tackles its huge debt, reverts to regional utility Det Free Press Cendant Plans to Shut Down Trip.com Travel Site WSJ Comcast's Web fee draws fire CNN/Money Luby's to close 50 restaurants KC Star Frank on Ropes NY Post Mortgage customers sue Wamu over prepayment fees Seattle PI Microsoft manager facing charges died of poisoning Seattle PI SARS fever hits economies Asian Times U.S. Firms Aren't Immune Street Deadly virus alters business routine in Southeast Asia USA Today Economists: SARS could hurt China's economic growth AP Indonesian Gov't May Begin Using Euro Instead Of US Dollar Asia Pulse Air Canada: Court filing only the beginning Globe & Mail Tuesday April 1 U.S. commanders prepared to endure heavy casualties to capture Baghdad MN N.Korea fires short-range missile, days after Japan launches spy satellites AP Best-Laid Plans Ludwig Von Mises Iraq not economy's sole enemy LA Times Rising cost of war fuels tensions on Capitol Hill CS Monitor Battlefield Is A Showcase for Defense Firms WP Arms Exporters Could Thrive On Televised Success in Iraq Earthshaking vs. market-moving IHT (NYT) Airline may avoid Chapter 11 AP AMR CEO: No Chap. 11 for now Taylor: G7 Ready to Buffer Shocks Reuters Canadian Aerospace industry feels U.S. wrath Globe & Mail Finnair warns of 2003 operating loss FT Air Canada Files for Bankruptcy Protection From Creditors; Trading in Shares Halted “U.S. retail sales will rise this year at their slowest rate in at least a decade -- a far slower pace than originally expected -- because the war in Iraq and high oil prices are crimping consumer and business spending” Reuters NRF Chain ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ ISM Index Falls To 46.2 in March ISM Layoff Announcements Drop Ahead of War Reuters (C,G,C) Why Jobs Data Won’t Be Believed NY Post (Crudele) Is this the second dip? CNN/Money Recent economic numbers show contraction has already begun. Q Tip: Stocks Are 50% Overvalued, Expert Says TheStreet (Smithers) GAO: Pension Program Using Trust Funds AP Budget deficit twice as big with alternate accounting method AP Is your pension safe? DMN Pension Plans Underfunded, Says Survey CFO The US Economy; A Changing Strategic Predicament Levy (Feb 15) Conference:"Monetary stability, financial stability and the business cycle" - 6 Papers - Paper 2: The Great Depression as a credit boom gone wrong PDF Emerging-market debt funds received more money this year than in all of 2002 B Mutual funds plan to reduce fees -- April Fool! UPS Retailers warn of falling sales, say fighting in Iraq is partly to blame AP GM Announces Sweeping Offer of 0% Financing Reuters ”0% financing for up to five years on nearly every vehicle it sells” Fleming Files for Chapter 11 Bankruptcy Reuters AOL's Swaps $8 Billion For $400 Million Forbes Even as late as 2001, AOL Time Warner's hubris apparently knew no bounds. Tobacco Suits Hurting Kraft NY Times (R) SEC probing First Union and Wachovia AP ImClone announces it must restate 2001 results CP Accounting errors at WorldCom now expected to total $11 billion Bloomberg Rulemaker IASB accused of stifling dissent FT Forced Apple Payments 'Unconstitutional' AP Gold: Secret Pressure 321Gold (Russell) The Hedgers' Incentive GoldenBar World trade talks in turmoil AAP (Agricultural reform) Shock fall in retail sales BBC UK retail sales have put in their worst performance in more than a decade Misery for 60,000 as Equitable drops compensation scheme Times Online London markets face listing drought BBC Japanese business sentiment worsens FT Tankan Brazil: Growth to slow, inflation to rise UPI “Take away the transitory energy sector earnings bubble and the earnings growth for the rest (of the S&P) will only be about 4% in 1Q03...” Chuck Hill



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