October 2008

Housing starts in the US sank 6.3% in September to a seasonally adjusted rate of 817,000, the lowest level in 17 years. That's worse than economists had expected, with a consensus forecast of a 1.7% drop in home construction. Moreover, economists expect further declines in the fourth quarter. Building permits, an indicator of future activity, fell 8.3% to a 786,000 annual rate. The decline ... read more

Jamie Dimon, the chief executive of JPMorgan Chase, chided elected officials yesterday in a withering, no-holds-barred speech at Harvard University, where he earned his masters in business administration. Dimon, whose bank is estimated to receive $25 bn in taxpayer bailout money, criticized the government's slow decision-making, charging that the US government suffered "institutional ... read more

With governments around the world finally attacking the global credit crisis in concert, the push is on to stop the global economy from tipping over into a protracted recession that could last for years.   But there still exists a little known, mystifying reason why Wall Street has been leveled, why markets around the world have been shaken, why central bankers have taken to the barricades, ... read more

General Electric, (GE), a bellwether stock for the US economy, reported a 12% drop in third quarter earnings, as the credit crisis continues to hammer its finance unit, GE Capital, a big profit driver for the industrial conglomerate. On closer examination, GE's earnings report has a number quality of earnings issues. Investors should sit up and take notice of the danger zones. The Bright ... read more

In a bear market, there is always a bull run on Chicken Little helmets. We are not headed for a Great Depression. There are no souplines stretching for city blocks. Yes the market may drift lower, but here are the major differences between then and now. The United States of Bailouts Yes we are now living in the United States of Bailouts, as the government has created a $700 bn ... read more