A Devastating Problem Japan Does NOT Have: Unemployment
by Wolf Richter • • Comments Off on A Devastating Problem Japan Does NOT Have: Unemployment
Twitter IPO A Dud? Yes, Says Survey of Financial Advisors (But You’ll Own It “Whether You Want It Or Not”)
by Wolf Richter • • Comments Off on Twitter IPO A Dud? Yes, Says Survey of Financial Advisors (But You’ll Own It “Whether You Want It Or Not”)
Brokers, financial advisors, and wealth managers are a recalcitrant bunch, suddenly, after having gotten their manicured fingers burned on a few super-hyped IPOs, and now they just refuse to get exuberant about the Twitter IPO. At least that’s what they indicated in a survey. But individual investors, well, that’s another story.
American Boondoggle Meets Chinese Methods
by Wolf Richter • • Comments Off on American Boondoggle Meets Chinese Methods
BYD, the name of a Chinese electric vehicle and solar panel maker, stands for “Build Your Dream.” Maybe that’s what they’re trying to do in China. But here, they’re building a nightmare: broken promises, falsehoods, design flaws… all lushly funded by American taxpayers. And they paid Chinese workers in California $1.50 per hour to do it.
Last Hope For Holiday Shopping Frenzy: The Few Who Can Splurge
by Wolf Richter • • Comments Off on Last Hope For Holiday Shopping Frenzy: The Few Who Can Splurge
Consumer spending hasn’t exactly been hot. With one big exception: auto sales. At 20% of total retail sales, they’ve been phenomenal and propped up overall retail sales. But in September, there was a downdraft. The calendar got blamed. And in October, there was the government shutdown and debt-ceiling debacle. And now all bets are off.
Hiding Inflation: People Get Bigger, Airline Seats Get Narrower
by Wolf Richter • • Comments Off on Hiding Inflation: People Get Bigger, Airline Seats Get Narrower
Selling airline tickets to our increasingly pauperized consumers is an art. And hiding price increases is an even greater art. While there are people who don’t worry about the price as they luxuriate in first class, others aren’t so lucky. For them, the industry has a special treat: squeezing their hips.
What Will It Take To Blow Up The Entire Japanese Banking System? (Not Much, According To The Bank of Japan)
by Wolf Richter • • Comments Off on What Will It Take To Blow Up The Entire Japanese Banking System? (Not Much, According To The Bank of Japan)
Buried in the Bank of Japan’s Financial System Report is a gorgeous whitewash doozie: if interest rates rise by 1 percentage point, it would cause ¥8 trillion ($82 billion) in losses across the banking system. Banks would be able to digest it. The system is safe. But then the report tallied up the losses of a 3 percentage point rise.
France Clamors for Currency War, Bundesbank Warns Of Housing Bubble
by Wolf Richter • • Comments Off on France Clamors for Currency War, Bundesbank Warns Of Housing Bubble
The euro, its dexterous management, the “whatever-it-takes” guarantees by ECB President Draghi, the trillions being shifted around to prop up banks and governments – all these efforts to keep the Eurozone duct-taped together have hit countries differently. Including France and Germany. They’re shooting at each other now, and hitting the ECB.
Texas Instruments CFO Admits: Stock Market Is Overpriced
by Wolf Richter • • Comments Off on Texas Instruments CFO Admits: Stock Market Is Overpriced
Stocks balloon, we’re incessantly told, because revenues are rising due to great products, ingenious strategies, or brilliant marketing; and because earnings are rising due to, well, if not rising revenues, then cost cutting, moving production overseas, squeezing suppliers…. But what if revenues sag and earnings plunge, not for a bad-hair quarter, but for years, and the stock still balloons?