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			Friday November 29 Falling Prices Put Fed on Guard Washington Post Policymakers Talk About Dangerous Dynamic for Economy Fed Says Risk of Deflation Is Slim Washington Post (Berry) Pension Funds Face Pressure To Manage Forex Exposure DJ QQQ Options Trading 101 Zeal Tobacco Money Could Harm State Credit Ratings NY Times (R) State and local governments across the country are turning to tobacco to plug their deficit gaps at a time when states are under the worst fiscal pressure in decades. Investor self-protection Economist The biggest lesson from Enron is that investors must look after themselves. Alwaleed fears Saudis will withdraw US investments Times Online Reuters Overconfident stock traders pay stiff price for their pride Toronto Star The things people do make them their own worst enemy... Technology trade shows feel fallout from economic downturn Boston Globe Optimism, Not Guidance, Fuels Tech Stocks TheStreet World Chip Sales Rise Just 1.8 Pct in Oct Reuters WSTS Ailing retailers desperate for strong sales Detroit News There are only 26 shopping days until Christmas, a period that will determine whether many retailers will make money or not for the year. Rulemakers to review pension fund accounting Reuters Global Asset Managers Shift to US Stocks Reuters SEC has Beef with Tyson Over its ‘Cooked’ Books NY Post United closer to bankruptcy filing USA Today Revenues Go Down the Pipe Fortune Last year energy company TransMontaigne had $5.2 billion in revenues. This year that shrank by some 98%. The reason: better accounting. UK Watchdog Fines Hasbro for Price Fixing Reuters FAO, Inc. Lowers Expectations Reuters European consumer confidence falls tp lowest in more than 5 years in Nov Bloom Many big spenders in HK living on credit Straits Times Record-high credit card defaults are stoking bankruptcies, crimping banks' profits and hampering economic growth. Japan's economic woes deepen BBC Brazil's Lula Faces Debt Crunch as Investors Shorten Maturities Bloomberg Brown accused of 'Enron accounting' BBC Troubles Push Paraguay Close to Bankruptcy NY Times (R) Thursday November 28 Wall Street a bear trap Australian (Roach) Money-market yields drop below 1% CBS MarketWatch Pension Plans Face Underfunding Next Year Reuters Watson Wyatt Soros cuts back European hedge fund activities Financial Times Nearly a third of the 55-strong workforce have either lost their jobs or are being relocated. U.S. corporate credit sinks despite economic rebound Reuters Moodys The downward trend results largely from companies borrowing too much in the 1990s and the early part of this decade. Best Fund Manager May Be None at All, Study Finds North Jersey Unemployment Pinches Hard at the Bottom of the Economic Ladder NYT (R) N.Y. Bank Guilty in Laundering Case Washington Post Broadway National Failed to Report Millions in Suspicious Deposits. Welch Divorce Proceedings Get Richer And Richer WP Belgian credit agency issues default notice against Zim Financial Gazette Personal Gold Investment in China Soon to Be Relaxed Peoples Daily Small gold bars, commonly known as "little yellow croakers" and suitable for personal investment, will make a debut after 50 years of disappearance from the market. Wednesday November 27 Buffett rebuffs Burger King talk CNNfn Berkshire CEO says not interested in buying the No. 2 burger chain, idea likely planted by bankers. “I stop [at Burger King] occasionally for a hamburger and that's as close as I've gotten.” Lessons from the man who sells to Buffett MSN His preferred definition of free cash flow removes capital expenditure for equipment maintenance and adjusts for balance-sheet growth and for required working capital changes. Beige Book Fed Fed warns of 'fragile' economy BBC Incomes Up by 0.1% - Spending Up By 0.4% BEA Amount of spending in Oct adjusted for inflation is less than the average of the previous 3 months, suggesting a slowdown in fourth-quarter growth. Bloomberg Durable Goods Orders Jump By 2.8% in Oct Census Help Wanted Index Falls To 38 Year Low Conference Board Individuals remain wary - Institutional investors bullishness AP Portfolio managers can't be seen holding a lot of cash at the end of the year. If we have a good fourth quarter and you don't play, you are going to have some tough questions to answer. A Profitless Recovery? Nothern Trust Debating America's Dollar Policy Morgan Stanley (Roach) Geopolitical Risk is as Important as Financial Risk Financial Sense The inspections begin Economist Bureau hasn't declared end of U.S. recession Arizona Republic U.S. States Risk Credit Rating Cuts Next Year, Analysts Say Bloomberg New York City Outlook Changed to `Negative' by S&P Bloomberg U.S. bank credit-card debt writeoffs up 35.6% AP Biting the Invisible Hand Business Week It's largely forgotten today that, in 1933, the stock market staged its greatest rally of the 20th century...Investors gambled that the Depression was over -- wrongly, as it turned out. Investors pull $7.7 bln from stock funds in Oct. Reuters ICI.org NYSE Seat Sold For $2 Million, Down $300,000 NYSE United's struggles may reshape airline industry USA Today GM's Saab to Cut 1,300 Jobs in Overhaul Reuters EDS downgraded by S&P as contracts dry up FT McDonald's to accept credit cards at U.S. outlets in 2003 Financial Post Top life insurers' results reveal inability to reverse their decline Japan Times S&P downgrades two Japanese life insurers Reuters Takenaka's Plan May Widen Banks' Losses This Year Bloomberg Europe hit by spreading industrial unrest Financial Times Abbey National Will Post Loss This Year, Cut Dividend Bloomberg First annual loss since selling shares to the public in 1989. Judge approves SEC, WorldCom settlement USA Today Regulators at Odds on Wall St. Talks Washington Post CSFB E-Mails Link Research, Banking - WSJ Reuters Goldman secretary fails to appear at theft hearing Reuters Ex-Enron executive pleads guilty in income tax case USA Today Tuesday November 26 Stop The Presses: Using Play Dough Would Be Wrong NYP Federal Reserve Governor Ben Bernanke may have gotten himself into some hot water by saying the one thing that no one in his position should say: we'll just print more money if the economy doesn't respond to traditional remedies. 3Q02 GDP Revised Higher to 4% BEA US economic growth seen anemic in fourth quarter-poll Reuters NABE Consumer Confidence Rebounds (Present Situation Index Flat) CB New Home Sales Decline in October Census (PDF File) Bear market likely to drag on: S&P director Business Times “Workers Scarred”: Long-Term Joblessness on Rise Reuters F.D.I.C. Is Considering Investment Changes NYT (R) (DJ) Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation, faced with growing bank failures, is considering major changes in its investment portfolio that could result in the sale of a portion of its Treasury securities. Chain Store Sales Drop in Nov. 16 Week Reuters Nearly every state is in fiscal crisis” NY Times (R) NGA A nemesis no more, deficit rising CS Monitor The idea of balancing the federal budget may today be farther down the list of Washington's priorities than at any time in 20 years. Taking Apart David Tice on His Dow 3000 Call TheStreet Beware the Pension Monster Fortune It lurks behind funny accounting, ready to pounce on unsuspecting investors US launches plan to abolish key tariffs Financial Times Wall Street regulators start setting size of fines Financial Times LVMH sues Morgan Stanley CBS MarketWatch Credit Suisse First Boston Denies Fraud Charges NY Times (R) Intel: A Not-So-Fab Future? Business Week Bonuses Shrink NY Post American Stock Exchange Fires 7% of its Staff NY Post American planning to cut back on flights - and may be cutting jobs as well NYP Is Target Missing Its Target? NY Times (R) CEOs Tardy 60% of the time USA Today Smut industry profits high in downturn AP Japan life insurers slip closer to danger zone Reuters German Business Outlook Remains Gloomy DW-World.de IMF Cuts Canada Outlook, Points to Higher Rates Reuters Credit card defaults: will the govt have to step in? Business Times U.K. Warehouse Goes Bankrupt, Leaving Wine Collectors Feeling Trapped WS Monday November 25 It's just another rally, not a fresh start MSN (Fleck) Ignore the blather about how the stock market has hit bottom. The current uptick in stocks is nothing more than a huge bear-market rally. Unfortunately, there’s still plenty of trouble ahead. Fighting Deflation Morgan Stanley (Roach) Global View: UPI interviews US economy UPI The U.S. economy agreed to talk Sunday in an exclusive interview with United Press Interview, the first time she has ever spoken to the media. Savers bleeding from latest rate cut CBS MarketWatch Fed hopes to ‘discourage saving’ by chopping rates by a half-point rather than a quarter-point. Bankruptcy Filings Hit Another Record Reuters Richard Russell on the Markets Gold-Eagle At some point, probably during the first quarter, while the public is rushing back into the market, the primary bear trend will reassert itself, and a new blood bath will greet the latter-day stock-buyers. History suggests the worst is not yet over, so be wary of equities Financial Mail More Furrowed Brows. Is a Double Dip Ahead? NY Times (R) Lazard Takes Beating NY Post Vacancies Hide in 'Shadow Space' Washington Post Geezers playing with care CBS MarketWatch Veterans of the 1974 bottom are still handling the rally with care. Fading away Boston Globe 'Rising stars' likely to be a rarity Financial Times War over stock options heats up Boston Globe High-tech firms in push to block accounting change Traditional pension plans start to cause their own trouble Hoovers (FT) Last year, pension plan assets held by companies that are members of the Standard & Poor's 500 Index lost US$90 billion, but pension accounting rules allowed the companies to book US$104 billion of pension income. Government seeks control of pension plan of former Global Crossing unit AP The great deflate debate Guardian The Economic Impact of War NewsWeek Wal-Mart Sees Sales at Low End of Range Reuters Federated Says Weekly Sales Disappoint Reuters Verizon's CWA workers fear layoff of thousands NY Daily News Bank of America charged off $261 mln Dobson loan Reuters (WSJ) LEH Cut CSCO Cut Reuters Analyst Recommendations IMF warns Europe and Japan on growth BBC Is the EU doomed to permanent underperformance? Economist Germans' action could wreck UK pensions Times Online Further turmoil on the way for Japan's banks Times Online High fiscal deficit menaces Indian economy: IMF IndiaExpress Bosses 'cannot be trusted' BBC Mystery Over Missing Funds Washington Post 'Master Salesman' Stands at Center of Health-Care Financial Crisis NJ to Sue Sears, Others on Pension Losses Reuters California, energy, and foul play CS Monitor Criminal investigations catch up with ad industry USA Today S.E.C. Inquiry on Homestore Has Expanded to Cendant NYT (R) Three companies cited in first Regulation FD charges CBS MarketWatch High-flying investor goes into free fall SF Gate People with financial problems increased their debts by 61 percent last year and have more than $52,000 in credit card debt on average. Plain Dealer Weekend Edition (Nov 23-24) Flood of Foreclosures NY Times (R) More mortgages than ever are being foreclosed, and more homes repossessed. Washington Insider, but Wall St. Pariah NY Times (R) Some senior executives of other brokerage firms cannot contain their rage at the mere mention of Mr. Schwab's name. N.Y. Fiscal Crisis Is Echoed Across Nation Washington Post If we continued to cut taxes, we might as well turn off the lights in American cities Pension fund may be tapped to ease deficit Milwaukee Journal Sentinel Contributions would be put into budget instead of retirement pool. Balancing budgets a hard thing to do for world's leaders NY Times (R) Virtually everywhere, from tiny towns to the world's biggest economies, a balanced budget is like a Good Housekeeping seal of political approval. And yet governments just can't seem to stick to the rules they set for themselves. Pension Fund Losses a Drain on NJ Companies Hoovers (Knight Ridder) Wall Street’s Biggest Turkeys NY Post Revealed: the cosy deals that taint Goldman Sachs Sunday Times ($) Focus: Goldman Cracks Sunday Times ($) Goldman's PR supremo caught up in 'spinning' row Independent Goldman Sachs Denies UK 'Spinning' Reuters Death to the “Bubble Poppers” Prudent Bear (Noland) Early signs point to a brutal holiday season for PC makers CNNfn Proposed Rules for Analysts Raise the Ire of Publications NY Times (R) Real Rates and Gold 3 Zeal The Mystery of Banking Murray Rothbard (PDF File) Bear Market Rally May Have Run its Course Bloomberg It's a bear market rally that is very seductive. Are things 20 per cent to 50 per cent better than they were in early October? GM Months Ahead May Be Pivotal for Greenspan Reuters Wall Street's recent gains failing to entice many individuals to participate AP James Dines, Editor of "The Dines Letter." NBR (Transcript) Swelling Auto Inventories Raise Worries Reuters Consumers caught in debit-credit duel Boston Globe A Ghost of Christmas Past: The Bonus Washington Post Buffett buys into Oakwood Homes CBS MarketWatch '80s Raider Irv the Liquidator Slows Down Reuters Dow Jones: We Paid For Strippers NY Post Job cuts include top Wall St. guns AP Best Buy Sign Is When Mavens Get the Ax Reuters Whether earnings rise or fall, whether the economy grows or contracts, nothing makes any difference to the strategists. They are always bullish Germany's Winter of Discontent Looms Large DW-World.de Businesses and financial institutions are preparing for the German economy to fall into a recession. N. Korea bans use of U.S. dollars Reuters “It's just one more wave of wild speculation that's going to end the same way the others have. To try to conclude that the bear market is over is the height of lunacy. Everybody (fund managers) believes it's OK to lose money, but they can't let the market go up faster than their portfolio. They buy the most aggressive names they can and they don't care. It's just devolved into a game of three-card monte." Bill Fleckenstein What The Bulls Are Saying” Friday November 22 Banks In Fine Mess NY Post The envelope is in and some of the worst and least offenders in the analyst conflict of interest probes - that have shattered Wall Street and rocked investor confidence - could come as quite a shock. Wall Street faces $1 billion in fines WSJ Economists lower forecasts for GDP growth next year WSJ Bear Trap? Morgan Stanley (Roach) Why should this rally be any different from those that have ultimately failed in the past? Why The Rally Is Suspect Comstock Do you believe in the SOX? Financial Post Chip stock rally a sign that speculation lives. Dead cat bounce eyes chance to pounce Financial Times Fixed-income investors headed for a crash CBSMW Vanguard revealed that 70 percent of the investors do not know that bond prices and interest rates move in opposite directions. Watch out for stock-option overhang CBS MarketWatch Investing tip: Companies with the most on the line. A Rough Patch for Insurers Washington Post Global chips sales down Reuters Philadelphia mayor plans to cut 2,500 jobs to head off fiscal crisis AP Funding shortage expected to hit state, businesses Chicago Sun-Times J.P. Morgan Wants `Disguised Loans' Evidence Barred at Trial Bloomberg Fed Crackdown Threatens Earnings at Capital One TheStreet Regulators Say Morgan Stanley Did Not Keep E-Mail Records NY Times (R) GE cut by Merrill CNNfn Sweden's Autoliv cutting 850 jobs in United States AP NYSE Monthly Short Interest Report NYSE Costello warns of growth slowdown World Today London on the "brink" of recession Business A.M. French economy 'deteriorating' BBC Brazil warned to tread carefully over debt BBC Japanese automakers launch price war Japan Times Despite all these efforts, car sales remain in the doldrums. Bankrupt Logic About China's Debts Business Week Beijing thinks it can grow its way out from under a $700-billion mountain of bad loans. Good luck! It has never worked anywhere else. At the country's largest discount brokerage, buy-and-hold is being replaced by a new mantra: trade or else. Financial Post Thursday November 21 ”One of the great ironies on Wall Street is that the higher stock prices climb, the more people want to buy them. This quirk of human nature (traders are people, after all) was boldly displayed Thursday, as gains begat more gains.” TheStreet Unemployment benefits for about 800,000 workers will likely expire on Dec. 28 Book-to-Bill Ratio Slips Again TheStreet SEMI Bear reality check Globe & Mail Investors can be seduced . . . into a market full of false rallies. CFOs, CEOs, and the OECD don't see a recovery until 2004 CFO World economy 'slow and fragile' Reuters OECD Economic Outlook Gov't Posts $53.99 Bln Deficit in October Reuters Treasury Small Deals, Big Questions NY Post Folks in investment banking circles are puzzled over how aggressively J.P. Morgan Partners, the big bank's private equity subsidiary, has been pursuing acquisitions. CEOs want stimulus package CBS MarketWatch America's top corporate executives say the economy needs a massive $300 billion fiscal stimulus package from Congress and the White House. The 'Value' Debate Lacks Basic Definition TheStreet The Fed Trounces the Private Sector in Crystal-Ball Gazing NYT GE Cuts 2002 Forecast, Will Take $1.4 Bln Charge Bloomberg Fitch cuts GE Global Insurance Holding ratings Reuters S&P May Cut UBS Closing Trading Floor It Acquired From Enron NY Times (R) UBS, the Swiss investment bank, said the move was a result of "extensive restructuring and market contraction" in the energy trading industry. Cisco: Options would weigh on earnings Cnet Stock option expenses would have shaved $368 million from its fiscal first quarter results, resulting in net income of $250 million, or 3 cents a share. Earlier this month, Cisco was cheered for reporting first quarter earnings of $618 million, or 8 cents a share. National Century's Trouble Cascaded Washington Post Computer Associates probe widens CNNfn Morgan Stanley in new layoff round: reports CBS MarketWatch WorldCom To Trim At Least 3,000 Jobs Washington Post Berkshire's Munger to sell $29.8 mln in shares Reuters Why Gold Bugs Are Swarming Again Business Week Decline in world gold demand slows CBS MarketWatch NYSE Disciplinary Report NYSE The ‘Stupidity Pact’ Barbados Advocate Two-year goal eyed for entity's bad-loan buys Japan Times ‘I want Takenaka to step down tomorrow’ Asahi Argentina fears bankruptcy AP Argentina could go bankrupt by May unless it gets outside financial help... Korea's Looming Pension Debacle Business Week Wednesday November 20 Investors may have to wait 8 years for next sustained bull market Housing costs taking more of family budgets AP Housing starts plunge 11% CBS MarketWatch The Threatening Trade Deficit Comstock Schools bend under tight budgets CS Monitor The worst fiscal crisis in 10 years forces districts to enlarge classes, cut sports teams, and charge for busing. Where are the US holiday shoppers? Reuters Key year-end shopping season begins on a low note for retailers Wal-Mart, Federated, Kmart, Target and JC Penney AOL cancels holiday parties Cox News Citing "difficult business challenges," America Online is canceling holiday parties for its 18,000 employees... Bankruptcy court an attractive exit for troubled companies SDDT A strategist wonders about terrorism CBS MarketWatch (Calandra) Power Trade by El Paso Casts Doubt on Its Report NY Times (R) The questionable power trade helped assuage El Paso's auditor, PricewaterhouseCoopers, which had suggested a possible restatement after finding that the company's first-quarter profit had been overstated by as much as $100 million. Another Cloud on the Horizon for Lucent Retirees NY Times (R) Large Cable Operator to Restate Its Results for 2000 and 2001 NYT SEC probe into Vivendi set to grow deeper Financial Times Conseco Facing Ch.11, Posts $1.1B Loss NYP Boeing to cut 5,000 more jobs in commercial group CBS AOL Cuts 90 Jobs NYP Morgan Stanley is slated to slash its equities and trading staff by 10% NYP Xerox cutting over 2,400 jobs AP Black & Decker Cutting 1,300 Jobs Guardian UK bank chief warns on house prices BBC The Bank may have over-stimulated the housing market BOJ downgrades economy view, first time since Dec 01 Reuters BOJ Japan's Horror Show Fortune Why its financial crisis is even scarier than you think Japan's zombie economy - not buying but browsing Guardian Starving Argentines face price rises BBC International Financial Risk Management Greenspan Leveraging always carries with it the remote possibility of a chain reaction, a cascading sequence of defaults that will culminate in financial implosion if it proceeds unchecked. Only a central bank, with its unlimited power to create money, can with a high probability thwart such a process before it becomes destructive. Greenspan hints something terrible is happening with derivatives GATA Greenspan Praises Markets' Flexibility Washington Post Tuesday November 19 Auditors May Face Curbs on Incentives Washington Post Major Japanese firms report huge combined loss Japan Times The figure, which is the highest recorded by the agency since it began compiling data in 1967, marked a 38.3 percent increase from the previous year. NTA Economists' No. 1 nightmare: a downward spiral IHT Bankruptcy Capitalism Magazine Consumers Say They Will Spend Less Than Last Year During X-Mas CFA U.S. chain store sales fell 1.2 percent in the week ended Nov. 16 Reuters Who's Afraid of the Deficit? Cassandras Are Out of Style NY Times (R) The Congressional Budget Office has repeatedly warned that if nothing is changed, the government will spend as much on Social Security, Medicaid and Medicare by 2030 as it does for its entire budget today... Doomed by demographics? UPI It was all so easy in 1908. Herbert Asquith introduced the British Old Age Pension, at 5 shillings (25 pence) a week, in the 1908 Budget, and didn't even have to raise taxes to pay for it. It helped of course that the pension was payable from age 70, at a time when British life expectancy was under 50. Government Takes Risks by Guaranteeing Loans for Prior Defaulters AP SBA Internet Tax: The New OPEC for Politicians CATO Here’s My Plan To Save The U.S. Economy NY Post (Crudele) The economy still stinks. And Washington doesn't have a clue how to make it smell any better. Wall Street Stock Pickers Stumble Dow Jones Only 8 of the 15 brokerage firms in The Wall Street Journal's quarterly stock-picking survey managed to beat the minus 17.6% return on Standard & Poor's 500-stock index for the third quarter. Not one of the 15 firms managed to post a positive return for the quarter. Strategy Upset NY Post Wall Street's best-known cheerleaders are afraid they'll be tossed completely out of the money game. Downturn matches Great Crash on Monday The Dow Jones industrial average crossed a depressing milestone Monday: It was day 1,039 since the index of 30 blue chip stocks closed at an all-time high on Jan. 14, 2000. Venture-backed IPOs post worst qtr on record Reuters Tech stocks charge back but may not be rally's stars USA Today 401(k) plans' big menus may still lack healthiest choices USA today Over the past year, the average participation rate in 401(k) plans fell 2.5 percentage points to 75%...Workers' savings rates have declined to 7% from a peak of 8.6% in 1999. Accountants regroup after 'year of hell' BBC Questions Arise on Accounting at United Way NY Times (R) Wall St. Braces for GE to Unveil Big Charge Reuters Moody's cuts GE Global, Employers Re's IFS rating to Aa2 Reuters Home Depot Clobbered -- Same-store sales down in Q3 CBS MarketWatch AMD Has Fallen and It Can't Get Up TheStreet Agilent to Eliminate 2,500 Jobs AP EMI warns over music sales BBC Hospital Lender Says It Is Insolvent Washington Post The company moved money between accounts so it would appear its reserve funds were in compliance with the agreements with bondholders when they were not. Health care scandal intensifies USA today Oil Tanker Splits Off Spanish Coast; Beaches Polluted Bloomberg OPEC reins in oil overproduction, aims to cut more Reuters Iraq war fears lift oil prices BBC BOJ tweaks policy, bank shares dive on reform fear Reuters “Shares in several big banks plunged to lifetime lows” Monetary Policy Statement BOJ Should there be a risk of financial market instability, such as a surge in liquidity demand, the Bank will provide more liquidity irrespective of the above target. S&P:Pressure growing on smaller Japan trading firms Reuters Falling Land Prices in Japan Take a Heavy Toll on Banks NY Times (R) Concern that China’s bubble could burst soon Bangkok Post S. Koreans' Credit-Card Binge Fuels Defaults, Threatens Banks Bloomberg Big firm 'will fail' warning SundayHerald (Scotland) In the next year, or possibly two, a major high-profile company will fail, and there will be ramifications for you all. Here’s how bad the market is for personal computers this holiday season: The hot, gee-whiz product Gateway Inc. is featuring in its retail stores is a TV set. WSJ Monday November 18 Greenspan: Policymakers Can't Avoid Errors Reuters FDRB Book: A History of the Federal Reserve, 1913-1951 Beyond The Fix Morgan Stanley (Roach) Street plays same old game, invites another fall (Fleck) It's a new day but you'd think it was early 2000 by the way The Street still plays 'beat the number.' Nationalist Weekly Market Commentary The real story right now is in the credit markets, where Greenspan's much praised ability of banks to "lay off risk" is creating some real tensions. These tensions broke into public view in Thursday's Wall street journal, where two separate articles chronicle the collapse of trust. BOJ To Start Buying Shares From Banks Nov 29 Dow Jones Dark Side of Post-Bubble Economy Reuters History shows that recessions are like cockroaches. When you see one, there's bound to be another waiting in the wings. Recessions that began in 1957, 1960, 1969, 1973 and 1980 were all followed by an economic recovery prior to a second dip into negative territory. Companies chisel away at workers' benefits USA Today Workers are facing some of the most dramatic cuts and cost shifts in more than a decade. Most U.S. Firms Do Not Plan More Hiring Reuters Home equity debt is surging Milwaukee Journal Sentinel Property taxes rising dramatically CS Monitor Fees rise as refinancing rolls CS Monitor U U.S. Luxury Home Sales Slip, a Sign the Housing Boom May Fizzle Bloomberg They fell 10 percent to 4,890 in the third quarter after having climbed 68 percent in the second quarter. Lower rates raise status of lowly junk bonds Post-Gazette Pension tension CBS MarketWatch CSIS Seniors' needs will push some countries to crisis point. Bills for Boom Now Come Due Washington Post Bondholders and Lenders Must Decide If AES Is Worth More Dead Than Alive. National Century Files for Bankruptcy Protection Bloomberg JetBlue CFO hot over J.P. Morgan share sale Reuters We are not happy at all with the way they behaved. Frankly, we can't wait until they get rid of the last 500,000 (shares). We're tired of them messing with our stock price. AOL named in Homestore suit WSJ Bristol-Myers to delay revenue refiling Financial Times AMD Sees Up to $600 Mln in Pretax Charges Reuters AT&T shares hit by Lehman's downgrade Reuters Microsoft shows 85% profit margins for Windows Financial Times Brown hails 'success' of cut-price gold sale Telegraph Swiss Life, France's Scor Seek Cash as Losses Mount Bloomberg Equitable Life 'could go under' BBC Small firms still struggling BBC Germany's Budget Gap Sets a Bad Example Business Week Are China's Banks Caught in Quicksand? Business Week If China can't deal with its bad loans at a time when annual growth tops 7%, what will happen if the economy sours? Hard times in Singapore shows up in equity sales AFP 'Double dip' fears grow in Singapore BBC In case anyone hoped that HSBC's agreement last week to buy Household International of the US for $14bn would help revive the merger and acquisition market, investment bankers and market observers say "forget it". Financial Times Weekend Edition (Nov 16-17) NY's Spitzer: No Settlement This Week Reuters CRA$HMAKER Financial Sense Does the Rot on Wall Street Reach Right to the Top? NYT (R) Weak Links Prudent Bear (Noland) Bear-Market Portfolio Design Zeal Asset Bubbles - Geopolitical Troubles 321Gold Watch Those Pension Costs Comstock Weyerhaeuser has been assuming an 11 percent return while Warren Buffett’s Berkshire Hathaway has been using a conservative 6.5 percent. Down and Out? Many More of us Will Soon Be, Too! NY Post Making It Hurt NY Post Regulators are looking for fines of as much as $500 million from CitiGroup and CSFB to settle investigations of analyst conflicts of interest. Companies Battle Loss of Pricing Power Reuters Jobless statistics overlook many SF Gate Yvonne Holt is out of work, owes $40,000 on her student loans and badly needs a paycheck. But she's not unemployed, at least not according to the government. Finance: Is Your Money Fund Safe? Reuters Lower interest rates are squeezing the one sector of Wall Street that has been thought to be as safe as cash: money market mutual funds. SEC probes credit rating agencies CNNfn Credit rating agencies are empowered under law to gather information from corporations that is not available to the public. FBI Raids National Century Offices Washington Post UAL's United to Cut 9,000 Jobs, Capacity in Loan Plan Bloomberg J.P. Morgan's Thorny Dilemma on Troubled Loans NY Times (R) TXU defaults in Europe IHT (Bloomberg) Pressure on energy companies intensifies Financial Times Energy trading losing its zap Rocky Mountain News So Many Million-Dollar Mansions, So Little Interest Washington Post Compromise proposed over options SF Gate Canadian’s yank $1.1-billion from funds Globe & Mail For only the second time in 45 years, Japan's most popular stock index, the Nikkei 225 has closed on an absolute point basis below the Dow Jones Industrial Average. CBS MarketWatch -- Executives of top banks say everything is fine Japan Times Friday November 15 The Market Scholars' Star Turn Washington Post Grubman: Weill and I played Armstrong "like a fiddle”. NYT (R) Grubman informed Weill on AT&T CNNfn Is Citi's Weill Outward Bound? Business Week CSFB, Citi May Face $200 Million Fines Reuters House Passes Revised Bankruptcy Bill Washington Post Industrial Production Slides 0.8% Reuters FDRB Release Producer Prices Jump by 1.1% BLS Inventories fatten in September CBS Consumer Sentiment Bounces in Early Nov. Reuters The Asset-Liability Mismatch Morgan Stanley (Roach) Specter of debt deflation looms over economy Yomiuri Deflation: from Tokyo to Wall Street CNNfn Accounting failures have cost Americans $60,000 on average AP Bush and The Credit Bubble Washington Post There's far more weakness in credit markets than most policymakers recognize. Congressional Salaries GabeHarris The price of atonement Economist Was IPO Frenzy Rigged? 60 Minutes Growth can be bad for investors MSN (Jubak) Spotting the next asset price bubble Financial Times Drawing gold lines in the sand CBS MarketWatch (Calandra) For more than a year now, each time the price of gold has flirted with $325 an ounce, New York-traded futures contracts for the metal get dumped. Housing prices still sizzling CNNfn GE Downgraded on Earnings Risk CBS Semiconductors Cut TheStreet 'Model' PG&E unit defaults on loan SF Gate Lehman Fires Chief Strategist Applegate NY Post Reuters axes 150 - employees in New York are bracing for more cuts NY Post Critics charge Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac pose risk to economy WBJ Is eBay's Stock Too Hot to Touch? Business Week Argentina Defaults WP O'Neill says Argentina economy stabilised; if anything 'mildly positive' AFX Pension schemes 'under threat' BBC ACA Equitable to cut pension payouts by up to 30% Financial Times Equitable Life, the beleaguered UK life assurer, brought misery to 50,000 ensioners on Friday...Equitable blamed the decision on falling equity markets. Bear market scares Swiss investors Swiss Info Germany's life insurers have gambled away their strength Economist Tax shortfall means more debt for Japan BBC Japan consumer loan sector may be heading for hard times The Star Such loans are used by people in cash-friendly Japan the way credit cards are used in the US and Europe, and the companies’ loan books have grown by 1,600% since 1981. So how come when someone analyzes the retail numbers, it's okay to include a whole pile of people buying sweaters and coats because they feel a chill, but it's not okay to include the fact that fewer people are buying cars? Ingram, G&M Thursday November 14 Wall St. and the Nursery School: A New York Story NYT (R) Sanford I. Weill helped to secure spots in an exclusive Manhattan nursery school for Mr. Grubman's twin daughters after he began recommending that investors buy AT&T stock. The Smoking Gun NY Post Weill's Biggest Crisis Washington Post Citigroup Chief Called to Account for Conflicts in His Empire Grubman admits inventing story AP Banks Go From Powerhouses to Pariahs WP Oct Retail Sales Flat (up 0.7% Excluding Autos) Census Cities in Crisis ABC News America’s Cities Feel the Recession Bite - Citizens Are Paying UK's Dr Doom still bearish on "expensive" stocks Reuters Wary hedge funds buy into share market rally Reuters Hedge fund managers, fed up with sitting on piles of cash in volatile markets and wary of missing rallies, are turning bullish on equities for the first time in months. Neglecting Their Watch, the Sentries of the Markets Fall From Grace WP Head And Shoulders Tops In Progress? Internet Stock Report History shows market volatility can last decades AP Money-Market Funds May Cut Fees, Close After Rate Cut Bloomberg Was IPO Frenzy Rigged? 60 Minutes Hedge Funds Down NY Post Tech recession pushes computer giants into slugfest USA Today Vacancies show dot-com pain lives USA Today Bankruptcies: Investors Do Have a Hope Business Week Bubble in the Heartland Fortune “We started to see money gravitate from poor-performing stock exchanges to wheat” Too Much Ventured Nothing Gained Fortune Median home price up 7.2% in 3Q02 Mortgage Rates Dive to Record Lows Study: Pension shortfall will hurt automakers ability to compete AP HON warning on asbestos claims FT $1.7 Billion Pension Deficit Chevron faces whack from pension fund SF Gate SBC DJ R.J. Reynolds Accused Of Money Laundering Washington Post Suit Also Alleges Smuggling of Cigarettes to Iraq Applied warns of slowing chip equipment sales FT AMD to Cut 15 Percent of Work Force Reuters Financial Turmoil Intensifies at Interpublic Group NY Times (R) United bankruptcy deadline: Dec. 2 CNNfn UAL denies drop-dead date CBS Sprint's PCS division to cut staff by 6 percent CBS MarketWatch Credit Suisse Posts 3rd-Quarter Loss on Writedown Bloomberg Gates honored with big condom CNNfn Nikkei shrugs off GDP data to hit new 19-year low JT ‘Failure Warning’ Possible dollar shortage may hit Japanese investors Reuters Housing market worries Bank Times Online Analysts said the Bank’s Inflation Report suggested interest rates would remain on hold for some months. EU begins process of punishing Germany IHT Germany Tops Deficit Limit It Insisted Upon for Europe NY Times (R) Japan MOF Kuroda: Very Worried About Deflation In China Dow Jones As Argentina goes, so go the Americas CSM Argentina faces fresh default BBC The Bank said the move meant it would not consider any new loans for the country. Wednesday November 13 Testimony - Greenspan FDRB ‘Soft Patch’ CNNfn FBI to Review Reported SEC Security Breach WP Survey Of Ceos Reveals Fragile Economic Outlook BRT 60 percent of CEOs expect their company’s employment to drop in 2003...57 percent of CEOs expect their U.S. capital expenditures in 2003 to be the same as 2002 levels, while 24 percent expect a decline. Only 19 percent expect higher capital spending. Grubman and Salomon in 62 lawsuits CBS MarketWatch Also: Merck subject of Justice Dept. investigation Business Group Contradicts W-House, Calls Economy Weak WP Clueless CEOs call for stimulus UPI Fund managers say stocks in bear market rally Financial Times Mobsters infiltrating markets Globe & Mail Organized crime groups have infiltrated Canadian and U.S. capital markets to launder money and manipulate stocks in what regulatory officials say is a "growing phenomenon." For the Fed's next trick... CNNfn Remember: these are in-case-of-fire-break-glass measures for when the economy is in real trouble -- if you see Fed policy makers performing the following tricks, you can get a pretty good idea of just how desperate they are. Salvation by Printing Press Mises.org By cutting interest rates and pushing up the money supply, the fed has done whatever is possible to make the necessary liquidation as long and painful as possible. Eliot Spitzer appears to be caving in to Wall Street NY Post Business starts off 25% last year Boston Globe Quest for recovery eases U.S. deficit fears IHT (Globe) Md. Budget Shortfall Worsen Washington Post Nearly $600 million in the red -- almost $200 million more than projected in Sept Report: NYC Receipts to Fall Short AP The city is facing a deficit of about $1 billion this fiscal year - fiscal 2003 - and as much as $6 billion in fiscal 2004. US seeks reporting of offshore moves AP Treasury Press Release -- http://www.corporatetraitors.com/ Bankers Bounced NY Post Bloomberg Taking A Hit NY Post The white-shoe firm is bracing for another round of pink slips in it global investment-banking division that could reduce its ranks by about 20 percent. 'Johnny Appleseed' for a Risky Field Washington Post Citigroup's Weill Asked Grubman to take a ‘fresh look’ at AT&T Bloomberg Layoffs will cost Schwab $90 million in fourth quarter AP National Century's Woes Claim 2nd Health Provider WP Cable & Wireless cuts 3,500 jobs BBC Union expects Verizon to cut up to 950 jobs Boston Globe A look at the GAAPs in Nortel's demise Globe & Mail Berkshire's Buffett bubble Financial Post Gates gives $100m to fight HIV, $421m to fight Linux The Register Puplava Interview - Dr. Parks FS What Does Mr. Greenspan Really Think? Nikkei closes at 19-year low CNNfn Assessment of economy downgraded Japan Times The Japanese government on Tuesday downgraded its overall assessment of the economy for the first time in a year... Banks face tough test ahead on the international stage Asahi When fools rush in Red Herring Technology companies are dashing to China in search of salvation and sales. Many will return broken and beaten. Germany on brink of recession Financial Times Can Germany Resolve Its Banking Crisis Bloomberg Ontario destroys its power market Financial Post 'A California death spiral' Toronto Sun Suburbia fears a negative equity sequel Guardian Latin World Watch: Another lost decade UPI Fed: Americans Borrowing Even More AP Many Americans taking out cash, increasing loan amount in mortgage refinances Senior Loan Officer Opinion Survey on Bank Lending Practices FDRB "Don't Fight the Fed"! Comstock Tuesday November 12 Estimates for 4Q02 are still likely to be cut more than normal between now and the start of the reporting season in January. Chuck Hill Webster resigns CBS MarketWatch Remarks by Chairman Alan Greenspan FDRB FERC Faulted On Calif. Crisis Washington Post Unsustainable National Post What's wrong with U.S. economy? A saving rate that is too low, and asset prices that are too high -- and both point toward serious recession. Credit-Crunch Claims Are Demolished by the Data Bloomberg Banks Facing a Rate-Cut Squeeze TheStreet The Central Banks' War on Savers LewRockwell The tech bubble that won't burst National Post So if you want to know when the tide has turned, when investors have finally learned their lesson from the bubble, watch the most actively traded lists. Webster Downplays Warning on BDO Audit WP As mutual funds lose value, many see hikes in fees CSM A New Investor Era? Ha! Fortune Perfect Storm, Seen Heading for NY Budget NY Times (R) It's going to hit with a ferocity that has not been witnessed for almost 60 years. Deficits totaling at least $16.4 billion await the governors-elect USA Today States To Vote Today On Internet Sales Tax Plan WP Global investors switch out of equities and into bonds Business Times Who's Got the Right Numbers? CFO Philip Morris Backs Off 2003 Profit Growth Forecast Bloomberg Are UAL Optimists Building Castles in the Air? TheStreet New Morgan Stanley job cuts target brokers Reuters (WSJ) Wall Street Journal Lays Off 23 Employees NY Times (R) Kodak to Cut Rochester, NY, Mexico Staff Reuters Analysts Expect Credit Suisse Will Go From Bad to Worse NY Times (R) UK says gold sales were a success Mining Web Buy one, get one free conundrum Times Online Pirelli cuts 2,400 jobs to stem losses BBC One-third of the investment bankers at Commerzbank face the sack BBC Home values in Japan plummet by up to 50% Straits Times Y Yen-Carry Trade -- Japan's Other Bubble? Bloomberg Mounting Household Loans Dent Banks' Profits (Korea) Financial Times Hope in stock markets fading Toronto Star Fifty-two per cent of respondents said they feel the stock market has not yet bottomed out. A Global Shopping Spree for the Chinese Business Week Mainland companies are snapping up more overseas assets Falls hurt Europe's finance giants The Age Black market in money spirals out of control in Zimbabwe AP Singapore May Slip Back Into Recession - Yeo Barnama What happens in Singapore will depend a lot on what happens outside Singapore, particularly the US economy, which doesn't look very good right now. Europe's Inaction on Rates Puts Growth Burden on U.S. Bloomberg The U.S. is pro-business and in Europe they simply don't care. BUBBLE: The Roots of the '90s Boom and Bust Washington Post On CNBC, Boosters for The Boom WP Media Fueled New Economy, and Vice Versa WP Monday November 11 Money Management 101: What really matters MSN (Fleck) A Holiday Reading List Cross Currents A State of Disequilibrium Morgan Stanley (Roach) Gambling In-Security NY Post (Byron) Fears Increase, but Consumers Keep Spending NY Times (R) Bank fears housing crash BBC Pension funds leaning heavily on guarantor Philly Inquirer Dollar Falls to 16-Week Low vs Euro as U.S. Growth Seen Slowing Bloomberg Stocks destined to resume decline, veteran observers say CBS (Calandra) Gold bulls gather, suspiciously CBS MarketWatch Richard Russell has finally, indisputably, said it: the gold market is being manipulated. SEC aide quits after leak to Chinese Washington Times The case was covered up by the SEC and never reported to the FBI Burned investors find bear can bring out worst in broker PG If this case were to be widely publicized, people would be more concerned, even more so than they are now, about the stock market. Bouncing paychecks blindside some workers USA Today Economists: weakest consumer spending in a decade this quarter WSJ Stock market loses its luster for Americans Pioneer Press Hell hath no fury like an analyst misinformed Stuff GE Stock Drops 4% After Analyst Flags Finance Unit's Debt Ratio DJ Automakers' Frightening Health Costs Bloomberg National Century CEO Quits After Bondholders Allege Mismanagement DJ Home Health-Care Provider to Sue Financier Washington Post Oracle Downgraded TheStreet Capellas quits H-P presidency CBS Williams' shares plunge on DOJ probe CBS MarketWatch Mirant, Reliant Receive Federal Subpoenas Reuters McDonald's May Be Cut by S&P Despite Cuts Reuters Swiss Life faces criminal probe BBC Tokyo banking sector falls on FSA report Financial Times Japan's Financial Services Agency revealed over the weekend it believes bad loans at the country's banks are Y13,000bn ($109bn) greater than the banks say. Japan Ready to Intervene as Dollar Weakens Vs Yen Reuters Australia bets big on US bear market SMH The bear gets mean Toronto Star German life assurers face shake-out Financial Times BUBBLE: The Roots of the '90s Boom and Bust Washington Post Nasdaq 'Casino' Had Few Safeguards A CEO's Lesson: What Goes Up . . . In a Bubble Economy, Recognition Comes Too Late Weekend (Nov 9-10) The rumour that won't die National Post Investors keep worrying about J.P. Morgan's gold hedging exposure. Bankruptcies set to surge ahead of new law Financial Times It's Time to Move Pension Reporting Out of the Dark NYT Credit Crunch Looms NY Post What good is cheap money if banks won't lend it and firms don't want it? Bank troubles! GoldSeek The Fed threw a party and nobody came. Cisco's magic isn't working anymore Globe & Mail (Nov 7) 125 Basis Points Left to Sustain the Unsustainable PB (Noland) Volatility Trading the QQQs 2 Zeal Bears May Devour More Mutual Fund Firms Reuters SEC Has Questions On Most Big Firms' Financial Statements Dow Jones Stuck Under a Load of Debt Washington Post Unable to Meet Payments, Hard-Luck Consumers Spread the Pain to Lenders. Pitt, who previously wined and dined CEOs and accountants under investigation by the SEC, now just whines Free Press Pitt took the opportunity to jab at the political machine he believes led to his ouster. Spitzer could impose deadline for reforms Financial Times Warren Buffett Weighs Buying GE's Reinsurance Unit, People Say Bloomberg At Last, Short Selling for The Rest of Us NY Post Amid Bear Market, Foreign Holdings Of U.S. Securities Reach All-Time High SIA Shaken Power Market May Face More Cuts Reuters The wretched truth about reverse stock splits MSN UAL to lay off 2,700 more flight attendants Financial Times Friday November 8 Pitt’s Sidekick Resigns Reuters U.N. Council OKs Iraq Resolution AP Battle of the Central Banks Morgan Stanley (Roach) The only hope in dealing with deflation is to be early with aggressive policy stimulus. The End Of The Positive Catalysts Comstock Rates fall = pension tension SMH Rate cut worry hits bank stocks Financial Times Some money market fund mangers might have to waive fees to ensure their funds do not "break the buck". Deconstructing Alan Greenspan MSNBC Perhaps the most puzzling aspect of the Federal Reserve’s move to cut interest rates a half-point this week was the central bank’s conclusion that risks are ”balanced”... BDO Says Records Prove It Warned Webster Washington Post Wall St. Wary of Shelby Washington Post Franklin Delano Hoover?- II UPI Off-Exchange Derivatives Grow to Record $128 Trillion Bloomberg -- Acceleration of OTC derivatives market activity BIS Expense Those Options, Says IASB Forbes IASB International board's plan for expensing options irks tech execs Mecury News A most respectable call for $3,000 gold Mining Web Goldman's New York Gold Mining Equity Analyst McConvey Fired Bloomberg SEC warns Wall Street banks to cooperate USA Today Single-Stock Futures to Begin Trading NY Times (R) Soros is defendant in French insider trading case Business Times The long shadow of Big Blue (MSFT) Economist McDonald's to fall short of 2002 earnings target CBS MarketWatch Merrill Dumps Chief Economist, Team NY Post AMD to cut up to 2,600 jobs Mecury News Infineon braces for chip market gloom BBC El Paso Trades Out of the Trading Business TheStreet Awash in oil as Iraq floods the market Times Online This is diplomacy in action. With the Security Council debating something close to a declaration of war on Iraq, Hussein wants to be seen not as a threat but a useful trading partner. Industry incensed by UK rate freeze Times Online Swiss fear double-dip recession Swiss Info ABB May Cut Additional 10,000 Jobs AP Germany: Hard Times in Berlin Northern Trust Thursday November 7 Greenspan has a history of hastiness Globe & Mail A Dissenting View Morgan Stanley (Roach) Rate cut no balm for debt-laden consumers Reuters The Fed's Prescription for Disaster Mises The Fed's deflation dread CNNfn What a Fool Believes Pimco (Gross) Greenspan's Easy Greenbacks Won't Rescue Stocks TheStreet Let's hear no more tosh about how Greenspan ain't to blame... Capital is diversifying out of the Big Three -- the dollar, yen, euro Reuters Treasury Curve Steamrolled Reuters Longer dated U.S. Treasury paper romped Thursday as investors took a steamroller to the yield curve, signaling few shared the Federal Reserve's confidence in economic recovery. Analysis: Franklin Delano Hoover? I UPI After the 2000 election, we were politically and economically in an eerily close parallel to the U.S. situation in 1929-32. Now that Pitt's quit, Webster's next TheStar SEC Ousts Beacon Hill Management TheStreet Poll: Public supports Wall St. despite scandal, market CBS MarketWatch Home bankruptcies jump 8 percent WSJ The Neutrality of Money GoldenBar Consumer Credit Up 6% in 3Q02 FDRB As the Rich Get Richer, Are They Buying More? NYT (R) JPM Denies Gold Loss Rumors Reuters JPM Blocked in Effort to Collect on Enron Insurance NY Times (R) Flat Outlook Deflates Cisco Backers TheStreet A Jungle Out There NY Post How many shares does Amazon.com really have outstanding? Bill Ford’s Green Socialism and the Imminent Demise of Ford Karen De Coster Ford Motor does not have a balance sheet that will survive a recession. Bankrupt National Air Flies Into The Sunset NY Post American Air Announces a New Round of Cost Cuts NYT (R) TD may face more credit woes Financial Post Spotlight on bad loans shifts to CIBC and Scotiabank. Tyco workers to sue over retirement plans Boston Globe Air Canada's regional carrier mulls 391 job cuts Reuters I Did Nothing Wrong, Says Fastow CFO Greenspan puts pressure on MPC Times Online Has Alan Greenspan had an attack of irrational nervousness or are prospects for the US economy looking really grim? UK interest rates left on hold BBC Europe leaves rates unchanged Sao Paulo fails to make debt payment Financial Times Yet more Germans out of work BBC Wednesday November 6 Fed 50 FDRB Rate cut puts many savers in tough spot USA Today Text of Pitt's Resignation Letter Reuters Pitt replacement will be hard to find CNNfn Giuliani, Breeden among names floated; administration says finding a successor will take time. Dislodging the Fed Fantasy Washington Post The market's bad breadth CBS MarketWatch Even though the stock market in October turned in one of its strongest performances in years, the NYSE's Advance/Decline line actually declined for the month. Goldman, Morgan face SEC charges WSJ The regulatory investigation of IPO ‘laddering’ is reaching a peak. Equity funds fail to stop big outflows Financial Times Earnings Reports Still A Muddle AP Companies are still burying the losses and hyping their operations, and that is very deceptive. Millions of People Hop On and Off Payrolls Every Month Washington Post US hedge fund investors face back taxes Financial Times Strategists counter market optimists CBS MarketWatch (Calandra) State agency sells huge bond issue SF Gate Merrill’s Junk-Bond Expert Steps Down NY Post Worldcon Fraud Now Adds up to $9B Plus NY Post Insurer ousts boss after accounts crisis BBC Buffett boosts insurance stake Bethlehem Steel is a better deal now Plain Dealer PBGC The government will take over Bethlehem Steel Corp.'s pension obligations. Subsidies for Stock Pickers Mises Collapse of markets takes toll of City workers' pay Times Online German factory orders fell more than expected in September Bloomberg BOJ looks to limit banks' stock risks Japan Times “even if these measures cause a certain degree of risk to the central bank.” Japan's Need to Accept Failure Business Week Takenaka admits to Japan's debt-deflation spiral BT 1.16 quadrillion yen Tuesday November 5 The Bear's Lair: Fed pushing on a string UPI At some point, Fed Chairman Alan Greenspan is going to have to wake up to an unpleasant reality: he has been operating since 1996 on the wrong playbook. Odd Farm-Sector Surge Distorts Jobs Data Reuters Without the jump in farm-based employment since June, the jobless rate would have climbed steadily to reach 6.0 percent in October...the rapid growth in farm jobs -- the fastest in more than 50 years of data -- seems implausible, to say the least. Dollar Falls on Speculation a Fed Rate Cut Won't Help Growth Bloomberg Rate cut could flatten some money funds USA Today Recent stock rally a bear market blip-ADAM Reuters Report: Tight Budgets Mean Flat IT Spending in 2003 E-Commerce Times Bush Deja Vu: It’s Still the Economy, Dubya NY Post Bush's Blind Spot: The Economy Business Week Short-term Treasury bill rates at 44-year lows AP How Blue Will Christmas Be? Fortune On average, analysts expect retailers' holiday sales to rise just 2.5% over last year--the smallest gain in a decade. Boom's End Is Felt Even at Wealthy Colleges NY Times (R) Bear market dashes retirees' dreams Ottawa Citizen Study warns on stock option plans Financial Times The US corporate "infatuation" with using shares and options to reward staff reached record levels in 2001. Who benefits from buybacks? Red Herring Webster Accused of Falsehoods - Report Reuters UBS Cuts Ratings on Several Regional Banks Reuters Airlines: Almost Grounded NY Post Dow Jones to cut 230 more jobs Financial Times WorldCom accounting fraud grows even worse Chicago Tribune TD braces for more bad loans TheStar TD has announced additional loan-loss provisions of $600 million for the fourth quarter mainly because of bad loans to U.S. power utilities. The Great Dividend Heist Forbes Owens Corning wants to force shareholders to give back years of payouts. Microsoft Has No Plan to Pay Dividends Reuters Germany braces for budget criticism BBC Berlin City Admits Bankruptcy Prices can go down! Sydney Morning Herald European Economies: Services Executives More Pessimistic Bloomberg China eases market for state-owned shares AP U.S. economist disappointed by watered-down reform package Kyodo “The biggest risk to earnings growth and to the equity markets is that the economy and earnings slip into a double dip.” Chuck Hill Monday November 4 Window Pains Contrary Investor Announced Job Cuts Soared in Oct Reuters CGC Factory orders fall in September CBS Census The World’s Only Growth Story Morgan Stanley (Roach) When marketing masquerades as investing MSN (Fleck) The Pitt principle in action Financial Post Incompetence is sometimes what the people in charge want. For Pitt, The Odds Aren't Good Washington Post Pitt has violated the First Law of Holes, which is, when you are in one, stop digging. Webster may quit if controversy hinders job Financial Times Profits looking good . . . until you look closer Financial Times Weak economy puts more pensions in peril CS Monitor Pension plans offered by 360 of the 500 companies in Standard & Poor's 500 index are underfunded by about $243 billion. Rising health insurance costs eat up raises USA Today Three keys to defeating debt -- now CNBC Online Sales of Recorded Music Down in 2002-Survey Reuters Wall Street Tries to Buy Lenience on Election Day TheStreet Investors' suits target telecoms giants Financial Times Brought by angry pension fund investors... City raring for triple whammy of rate cuts Times Online Graphic The US Federal Reserve, the Bank of England and the European Central Bank (ECB) meet this week to discuss interest rate policy. Pace of de-hedging gold seen falling in 2nd half Reuters U.S. Attorney's Office in N.Y., SEC Investigate Vivendi Dow Jones America's way not always the best way, economists say Japan Times “The current economic slowdown is unrelated to a too-high fed funds rate, and we see no benefit at this point to cutting rates” Bear Stearns “Following Election Day on Tuesday and the FOMC meeting on Wednesday, the market has nothing to look forward to except for another round of poor economic numbers and the start of the fourth quarter earnings downgrades.” Comstock Monday November 4 Window Pains Contrary Investor Announced Job Cuts Soared in Oct Reuters CGC Factory orders fall in September CBS Census The World’s Only Growth Story Morgan Stanley (Roach) When marketing masquerades as investing MSN (Fleck) The Pitt principle in action Financial Post Incompetence is sometimes what the people in charge want. For Pitt, The Odds Aren't Good Washington Post Pitt has violated the First Law of Holes, which is, when you are in one, stop digging. Webster may quit if controversy hinders job Financial Times Profits looking good . . . until you look closer Financial Times Weak economy puts more pensions in peril CS Monitor Pension plans offered by 360 of the 500 companies in Standard & Poor's 500 index are underfunded by about $243 billion. Rising health insurance costs eat up raises USA Today Three keys to defeating debt -- now CNBC Online Sales of Recorded Music Down in 2002-Survey Reuters Wall Street Tries to Buy Lenience on Election Day TheStreet Investors' suits target telecoms giants Financial Times Brought by angry pension fund investors... City raring for triple whammy of rate cuts Times Online Graphic The US Federal Reserve, the Bank of England and the European Central Bank (ECB) meet this week to discuss interest rate policy. Pace of de-hedging gold seen falling in 2nd half Reuters U.S. Attorney's Office in N.Y., SEC Investigate Vivendi Dow Jones America's way not always the best way, economists say Japan Times “The current economic slowdown is unrelated to a too-high fed funds rate, and we see no benefit at this point to cutting rates” Bear Stearns “Following Election Day on Tuesday and the FOMC meeting on Wednesday, the market has nothing to look forward to except for another round of poor economic numbers and the start of the fourth quarter earnings downgrades.” Comstock Friday November 1 ISM Index down (48.5) for Second Straight Month ISM 5.7% -- Payrolls down 5,000 BLS Consumers cut back spending CNNfn BEA Dollar Weakens to $1 Per Euro Bloomberg Gold Jumps SEC's Pitt Assailed on Omission Washington Post “It didn't occur to me to bring it up with each commissioner because I'd brought it up with the chairman and the chief accountant.” Webster Silver Lining?--Don't Bet On It Comstock Rising profits don’t curb layoffs WSJ Despite Stronger Demand, Firms Remain Reluctant to Invest, Hire NABE How Far Will The Fed Go? CNNfn A wild boar charges you and you shoot four of the six shots in your gun at it and it doesn't fall. Do you look at your gun philosophically and think, the first four shots didn't work, why bother? Big spenders cut back AJC Budget cuts hit broad spectrum of state's poor Boston Globe Ill-Wind: The Health-Benefits Crisis CFO Good old boys' network still rules corporate boards USA Today Getting on a board is like being invited into a secret club October U.S. auto sales race downward Reuters ’October does not look wonderful’ Ford CEO - USA Today Ford Eyes Cuts Firms could be forced to pay fines, repay small investors WSJ Fastow Cooked NY Post Bush Sold Stock After Lawyers' Warning Washington Post Lucent probe broader than disclosed WSJ Moody's Cuts Lucent, Nortel Ratings Reuters Judgment Day Friday for Microsoft TheStreet Cigna Discloses U.S. SEC Inquiry After Forecasts Cut Bloomberg Guess to Cut Jobs, Shut Plants NYP Hitachi to cut another 300 subsidiaries Financial Times CIBC to cut, halt loans to business Globe & Mail NYSE Seat Sale NYSE Asia Is Now a Zero-Sum Game Morgan Stanley (Roach) Japan Official Warns of Tax Shortage AP “The individual is standing still in stocks. They haven't sold. 401(k) plans haven't changed.”... Think Again Letdown might be long and drawn out Bloomberg (Goldman)



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