Companies & Markets

Microsoft Protests NSA Taps (I Hear The Crinkly Sounds Of A Bag Being Pulled Over My Head)

by Wolf Richter •  • Comments Off on Microsoft Protests NSA Taps (I Hear The Crinkly Sounds Of A Bag Being Pulled Over My Head)

That the NSA might have tapped into Microsoft’s “cloud” services, along with Google’s and Yahoo’s, turned into a publicity nightmare. Now Microsoft, which collaborates tightly with the NSA and other agencies on a host of projects, counter-attacks. With very mixed results.

The Stock Bubble In Context (Will The Last Bear Please Turn Out The Lights?)

by Wolf Richter •  • Comments Off on The Stock Bubble In Context (Will The Last Bear Please Turn Out The Lights?)

Stock market bubbles – they allow investors to make the mostest the fastest – don’t happen in a vacuum. They happen in a context. But this time, the context is different. Very different.

Argentine Stocks React to President Kirchner’s Latest Handiwork

by Bianca Fernet •  • Comments Off on Argentine Stocks React to President Kirchner’s Latest Handiwork

By Bianca Fernet, Argentina, The Bubble: President Cristina Fernández de Kirchner returned to her post this week, shuffling her cabinet and shaking up financial markets. Balding men marked the occasion by holding their heads in their hands in front of computer screens.

Here Is Proof (Provided By Japan Inc.) Why Abenomics Fails The Real Economy

by Wolf Richter •  • Comments Off on Here Is Proof (Provided By Japan Inc.) Why Abenomics Fails The Real Economy

The beneficiaries of Abenomics are now coming out of the woodwork with soaring profits – but they’re doing the opposite of what Abenomics promised they’d do: they’re diversifying away from Japan.

NSA Spying Crushes US Tech Companies in Emerging Markets (“An Industry Phenomenon,” Says Cisco’s Chambers)

by Wolf Richter •  • Comments Off on NSA Spying Crushes US Tech Companies in Emerging Markets (“An Industry Phenomenon,” Says Cisco’s Chambers)

Cisco CEO John Chambers had a euphemism for it during the earnings call: “challenging political dynamics” in China, without ever naming the NSA. Then there was India and others, including Russia where Snowden is holed up, and where sales outright collapsed.

The Day The Bubble Became Official, And Everyone Was Happy

by Wolf Richter •  • Comments Off on The Day The Bubble Became Official, And Everyone Was Happy

A new era has dawned: there is now a consensus that this is a stock market bubble. We’re back where we were during the last bubble, or the one before it. How do I know it’s not just some intrepid souls on the bleeding edge who are claiming this, but a consensus?

Are You Overweight EU Equities For The Big Recovery Yet?

by Wolf Richter •  • Comments Off on Are You Overweight EU Equities For The Big Recovery Yet?

There has been a symphony of calls for American investors to plow their money into European stocks. So, net inflows into European equity funds have set records, driven by euphoria about a presumed recovery. Equities soared. But turns out, reality has bad breath.

On The Surface, There’s Nothing Perturbing In The Challenger Job Cut Report

by Wolf Richter •  • Comments Off on On The Surface, There’s Nothing Perturbing In The Challenger Job Cut Report

In terms of announced mass layoffs, 2013 is shaping up to be the best year since 1997. Overall, employers aren’t shedding lots of jobs. But glitter in some sectors covers up aggressive, permanent job destruction in other sectors – where the sky used to be the limit.

Money Manager Nightmare: “How Can I Explain To My Clients That We Had A Third Crash In 15 years?”

by Wolf Richter •  • Comments Off on Money Manager Nightmare: “How Can I Explain To My Clients That We Had A Third Crash In 15 years?”

Sign of trouble: A wealth manager told me some of his elderly clients were now coming into his office, and they’d say, “My kids tell me that I can make 25% a year with stocks.” How much were they were willing to lose? “Nothing,” they’d say.