Jan 4, 2010

Daily Markets - Financial News & Opinions

Daily Markets - Financial News & Opinions

Cartoon: Tax Dollars Like Monopoly Money

Posted: 04 Jan 2010 03:01 PM PST

Source: Chip Bok, Comics.com, December 28, … [visit site to read more]


Watson Wyatt Merges With Towers

Posted: 04 Jan 2010 02:09 PM PST

Human resource consulting major Watson Wyatt Worldwide Inc. recently declared the completion of its $4.0 billion merger deal with competitor Towers Perrin Forster & Crosby, in what may be described as a big-ticket merger. The combined entity is called Towers Watson & Co. (TW).
The major competitors of Towers Watson are Hewitt Associates (HEW) and Marsh & McLennan Companies (MMC). However, the merger increases the size and scalability of the combination, which should help it … [visit site to read more]

The Burj – Finally

Posted: 04 Jan 2010 02:00 PM PST

There's a new high-water mark for the world today… literally.

The Dubai government officially opened the top floor of the Burj Dubai for business today. At 168 stories, 2,684 feet, it is the world's tallest building by a long shot. It's also the world's tallest free-standing structure, highest occupied floor, highest observation deck and longest traveling elevator. We can think of some other records… like, "world's most hyped construction project" or "world's greatest … [visit site to read more]

ISM Manufacturing Index Rises

Posted: 04 Jan 2010 08:50 AM PST

The Institute for Supply Management's survey of manufacturing purchasing managers was stronger than expected in December, coming in at 55.9 — up from 53.6 in November and better than the consensus expectations for a rise to 54.3. The ISM index is constructed from 10 sub-indexes and is set so 50 is the dividing line between the economy expanding and contracting.
This is the 5th straight month that the overall index has been in positive (over 50) territory.  In January of 2009, it was all … [visit site to read more]

Video: NYSE Closing Bell Market Monitor: NVS, C, CHK

Posted: 04 Jan 2010 06:47 PM PST

The latest in news, commentary, and information on what’s moving the US equities markets. Watch this broadcast LIVE at 4:00 pm EST daily @ “http://www.nyx.com/marketmonitor” … [visit site to read more]

GM Sees Impressive China Sales

Posted: 04 Jan 2010 08:46 AM PST

General Motors (GM) has witnessed a staggering 67% rise in sales to 1.8 million vehicles in 2009, driven by Government incentives including tax cuts and subsidies.
GM has revealed that its joint venture with Shanghai Automotive Industries Corp. (SAIC) has shown a sales rise of 63.3% to 727,620 units. Further, the automaker's joint venture with SAIC and Wuling became China’s first automaker to exceed 1 million units in annual sales in 2009. Sales in SAIC-GM-Wuling joint venture rose 63.9% to … [visit site to read more]

Video: Oil Prices Rise To Start 2010 As Dollar Weakens

Posted: 04 Jan 2010 06:45 PM PST

Front month crude prices were on the upside this session following a weaker US dollar and an advance in global equities. … [visit site to read more]

Video: General Motors’ Sales In China Reach Highest Ever

Posted: 04 Jan 2010 06:45 PM PST

The General Motor Company announced that total vehicle sales in 2009 of its vehicles in China soared to its highest level yet which sales slumped elsewhere. … [visit site to read more]

VRSN Registers Record Numbers

Posted: 04 Jan 2010 08:29 AM PST

VeriSign (VRSN) recently announced that it registered a record number of visitors for online sales during the year-end holidays this year. These numbers clearly indicate an increase in traffic on e-commerce sales.
Online shoppers saw the VeriSign seal approximately 789 million times, up roughly 50% year over year. VeriSign seals are common fixtures on web pages of leading merchants. For example, the VeriSign Secured Seal indicates that the Web site is secured by SSL encryption and the … [visit site to read more]

WFC Pays $25M In Stock Bonuses

Posted: 04 Jan 2010 01:10 PM PST

Carrying out its aforesaid bonus payment plans, on Dec. 31, 2009, Wells Fargo & Co. (WFC) announced that it has paid stock bonuses worth $25 million to its top four executives. The company also declared its denial for any cash bonus payments for the fiscal year 2009. Moreover, disablement of selling this bonus stock for at least the next five years, subject to company performance, came in as another rider of bonus payments.
Wells Fargo has taken a method similar to the one that Goldman … [visit site to read more]

Canada, Not China, Is U.S.’s Largest Trade Partner

Posted: 04 Jan 2010 01:01 PM PST

In a recent post, I linked to a WSJ article that referred to China as the “U.S.’s largest trading partner.” A Canadian, Carl Clarke, wrote an email suggesting that the WSJ got it wrong about China, and observes “that same statement is repeated frequently by various American news media.” I checked U.S. trade data, and Mr. Clarke is exactly right - Canada has been, and continues to be, the U.S.’s largest trading partner, not China. For the WSJ, America’s premier business paper, to … [visit site to read more]

Your Best Investment Strategy For 2010… And Beyond

Posted: 04 Jan 2010 12:58 PM PST

Monday, January 4, 2010: Issue #1167
At 11:38 AM on January 28, 1986, the space shuttle Challenger lifted off its launch pad at Cape Canaveral in Florida.
Seventy-four seconds later – and 10 miles higher – it blew up.
The launch was televised live, so the news spread quickly.
The stock market didn't stop to mourn… Within minutes, investors began bailing out of the four major shuttle contractors:

Rockwell International, which built the shuttle and its main engines.
Lockheed Martin, … [visit site to read more]

Natural Gas Stocks Dip Again

Posted: 04 Jan 2010 07:53 AM PST

In its weekly release, the Energy Information Administration (EIA) reported a 124 billion cubic feet (Bcf) decline in natural gas supplies for the week ended December 25, 2009. The inventory decline, though smaller-than-expected, was the fourth in as many weeks. This has finally started to erode the record-high storage amounts, as frigid temperatures continue to chill major population centers in the U.S.
Though the heating season officially began on November 1, 2009, net injections have … [visit site to read more]

“Nexus One” Coming To T-Mobile

Posted: 04 Jan 2010 07:37 AM PST

T-Mobile USA, the US wireless unit of Deutsche Telekom (DT), is set to kick-start the new year by offering Google's (GOOG) much-anticipated Nexus One (a.k.a "Google phone”) Android phone. Manufactured by the Taiwanese handset vendor HTC, Nexus One is Google's own branded Android smartphone and represents one of the high profile smartphones lined up for 2010.
 
Google is expected to begin selling its Nexus One directly from its website starting Jan 5, 2010, for an unsubsidized … [visit site to read more]

Novartis Interested In Alcon

Posted: 04 Jan 2010 07:20 AM PST

Novartis (NVS) has recently announced that it intends to gain full ownership of eye care company Alcon Inc. (ACL). Novartis will first complete its April 2008 agreement with Nestlé S.A. whereby it will acquire a majority stake (77%) in Alcon. Of this, Novartis acquired a 25% stake in Alcon in 2008 for $10.4 billion.
 
Novartis will be paying $28.1 billion for Nestlé's remaining 52% stake in Alcon. Once this deal is completed in the second half of the year, Novartis is planning to … [visit site to read more]

WaMu May Get Tax Refund

Posted: 04 Jan 2010 12:04 PM PST

Washington Mutual last week announced that it might get an additional $2.6 billion in tax refunds, due to a law signed by President Obama last month.
 
On Nov 6, 2009, President Obama signed a law that extended the temporary net operating loss carryback period to five years from two years previously. The purpose of the longer carryback period is to allow businesses to raise the cash needed by carrying back losses to prior-profitable years and generating a refund for those … [visit site to read more]

One Hand Of Government Squeezing Another

Posted: 04 Jan 2010 12:01 PM PST

Washington has been spending money like a drunken sailor to “rescue” the economy, but its efforts have been at least partly offset by the fiscal constraints other levels of government have to contend with. Hence, while federal authorities can (seemingly) borrow as much as they like to fund the difference between revenues and outlays, municipalities don’t have that luxury. They must maintain balanced budgets (or the fiction of such), which means they’ve had to sharply scale back spending … [visit site to read more]

Our NEW Trade Of The Decade!

Posted: 04 Jan 2010 12:00 PM PST

Well, that was it for 2009. Whew!
Another great year for gold. But it wasn't a bad year for stocks either. The NASDAQ rose 45%. The Dow went up about 20%.
As we guessed back at the beginning of the year, stocks bounced. What we didn't guess was that they would bounce so much for so long. All over the world, stocks went up…and continued to go up. A bounce is inevitable, following a stock market drop. And it's impossible to say how big a bounce it will be…or how long it will go on.
But … [visit site to read more]

Chunghwa Downed To Neutral

Posted: 04 Jan 2010 06:47 AM PST

We downgrade our recommendation for Chunghwa Telecom Co. Ltd. (CHT) to Neutral following increased competition in the Taiwanese telecom market and a challenging economic environment. Chunghwa commands the majority share in the Taiwan market for traditional voice and dial-up services, VoIP, IPTV, broadband, and mobile segments. However, the Taiwanese telecom market is quickly approaching maturity and has become extremely competitive following telecom regulatory changes.
 
Chunghwa … [visit site to read more]

A Decade Of Zeroes

Posted: 04 Jan 2010 06:36 AM PST

A decade ago when the ball fell in Times Square, there was an enormous sense of both optimism about the future and relief that the world did not come to an end. I'm not talking about some sort of round-figure Armageddon, but the much more real fear back then that all the computers in the world would stop working as their internal calendars would not be able to handle the year 2000.
That potential problem was very well telegraphed, and led to a huge amount of spending in the Tech sector to try … [visit site to read more]

New CPT Code For Masimo

Posted: 04 Jan 2010 06:31 AM PST

Masimo Corporation (MASI) has recently received a new Current Procedural Terminology (CPT) code from the American Medical Association, 88738, for its noninvasive hemoglobin (SpHb) measurement. Medicare has priced the new CPT code at $7.19 on its 2010 Medicare Clinical Laboratory Fee Schedule. The new pricing has been effective since Jan 1, 2010.
 
The new CPT code is an important milestone for Masimo. It will now permit health care providers to bill and receive payments from Medicare … [visit site to read more]

AngioDynamics’ New Products

Posted: 04 Jan 2010 11:13 AM PST

Recently, AngioDynamics (ANGO) expanded its product portfolio by launching two products − the total abscession nephrostomy drainage catheter and the micro-introducer kits with a new stiffened introducer option.
 
AngioDynamics completed the total abscession family of products by launching the nephrostomy drainage catheter.  The family of products, inclusive of general drains and a biliary drainage catheter, provides physicians and hospitals a full range of choice from a solitary … [visit site to read more]

The Lost Decade

Posted: 04 Jan 2010 11:03 AM PST

Before we dive into 2010, let's close the books on the last 10 years — that decade of reckoning. We noted before Christmas that, as we forecast long ago, the major stock indexes were a bust for the decade. But check this out… Were the last 10 years a wash for the whole economy?

So what's the term for 10 years of no growth in jobs, the slowest GDP growth in 70 years and a 4% fall in inflation-adjusted net worth? Dormancy? Depression? Whatever it is… ouch.
"Historically, downturns … [visit site to read more]

Picture Of The Day: The Lost Decade For The US Economy

Posted: 04 Jan 2010 11:01 AM PST

I posted a chart about the decade of zeros in the context of the Dow Jones Industrial Index a few days ago. There are a number of economic statistics conveying the same message.
The chart below, courtesy of The Washington Post, illustrates that US job growth expanded at a healthy rate for most of the last 70 years, but stagnated in the first decade of the new millennium as two recessions during this period took its toll. “… gross domestic product, was weak.
And household net worth, … [visit site to read more]

RC2 Penalized For Lead Levels

Posted: 04 Jan 2010 05:47 AM PST

RC2 Corp. (RCRC) has agreed to pay $1.25 million civil penalty for violation of the federal lead paint ban, as announced by the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) recently.
 
The CPSC had alleged that RC2 Corp. and one of its wholly owned subsidiaries, Learning Curve Brands Inc, imported and sold Thomas & Friends Wooden Railway toys that had lead levels exceeding the legal limits. However, RC2 Corp. denied of any deliberate violation.
 
High levels of lead in paints … [visit site to read more]

Shutterfly Upped To Outperform

Posted: 04 Jan 2010 05:30 AM PST

We are upgrading our recommendation on the shares of Shutterfly Inc. (SFLY) to Outperform. Increased usage of digital cameras combined with accessibility of high-speed internet provides significant expansion potential for the company. Product innovation, strategic partnerships with retailers and opportunistic acquisition also augur well. We believe Shutterfly's focus on developing a successful commercial printing business aided by strategic partnerships will significantly contribute to its … [visit site to read more]

Two Cotton Investments Bound To Benefit From The Laws Of Supply And Demand

Posted: 04 Jan 2010 10:24 AM PST

Some of the best investment opportunities can happen simply by ignoring the Wall Street herd and venturing onto the road less traveled.
Take traditional "breakfast club" commodities like sugar, cocoa, coffee and orange juice; all of which enjoyed a great year, despite bearish forecasts of doom and gloom. Sugar and cocoa even traded at multi-decade highs.
Similarly, cotton got a bad rap going into 2009, though it finished on Friday with a tidy profit, rising on the standard laws of supply … [visit site to read more]

Gold May Be Ready To Mount A Minor Rebound Rally

Posted: 04 Jan 2010 10:21 AM PST

Although December’s heavy sell off in the Gold (and Silver) market confirmed a significant set of monthly and weekly cycle highs, highs that may take this metal some time to meet/exceed, there now appears to be plenty of credible technical evidence to suggest that Gold may be ready to mount a minor rebound rally back up toward the $1,125 to $1,135 price zone. There are a couple of key market analysis tools that we can rely on to see if we can both confirm and then capitalize on a possible swing … [visit site to read more]

Goodrich To Pay Compensation

Posted: 04 Jan 2010 10:14 AM PST

Goodrich Corp. (GR) received an unfavorable Canadian court ruling, which directed it to pay $11 million in compensation. The compensation would be paid to 184 passengers of an Air France jet, which had a defective emergency evacuation system. Goodrich's emergency evacuation system was found to be defective when the plane facing a thunderstorm met with an accident in 2005. The passengers as a result had to jump from the plane suffering injuries.
 
Goodrich’s fortunes in recent times … [visit site to read more]

Video: Market Movers: ACL, BBY, BA, PNC, ISBC, BMY, BSX

Posted: 04 Jan 2010 03:07 PM PST

The latest news and information on U.S. stocks that are moving the market. … [visit site to read more]

Video: Risk Appetite Rises To Start The New Year

Posted: 04 Jan 2010 03:05 PM PST

Risk appetite continues to rise this session on positive economic data & an a rally in commodities. … [visit site to read more]

Trinity Acquires Quixote

Posted: 04 Jan 2010 04:57 AM PST

Trinity Industries Inc. (TRN) announced that it has signed a definitive agreement to acquire Quixote Corp. (QUIX) for a consideration of $61 million. Trinity will offer $6.38 per share for the acquisition, which will be completed through a tender offer for Quixote's common shares.
 
Shares of Quixote, which develops and manufactures highway products designed to protect and direct motorists, surged nearly 116% after the news to close at $6.37 on Thursday, Dec 31, 2009 on the Nasdaq, … [visit site to read more]

Forex Trading: USDCAD Holds Below The 1.0415 And 200 Hour MA

Posted: 04 Jan 2010 09:44 AM PST

The USDCAD found profit taking buyers after breaking the lows at the 1.0365 level. The resulting rally back higher has pushed the pair to the resistance area between 1.0405-15. The price also approached the 200 bar moving average at the 1.0422 level. 
I would expect to continue to see sellers against the upside resistance level.  A move lower should find support at the 100 bar MA now (at 1.0387). A break below that level will likely keep pressure on the pair with at test of … [visit site to read more]

Disney Completes Marvel Buyout

Posted: 04 Jan 2010 04:39 AM PST

Walt Disney Co. (DIS) recently announced the completion of its acquisition of Marvel Entertainment, Inc. (MVL).
 
Walt Disney acquired Marvel Entertainment in a cash and stock deal for approximately $4.24 billion. Marvel shareholders received in aggregate $30 per share in cash and approximately 0.745 Disney stock for each Marvel stock they owned. This values Marvel Entertainment shares at $54.03 each.
 
Walt Disney, thus, acquires Marvel Entertainment's strong global … [visit site to read more]

Why Proctor & Gamble Is Still The One To Watch

Posted: 04 Jan 2010 09:36 AM PST

It's hard to find a more blue, blue chip company than the world's largest consumer goods company, Procter & Gamble (PG).
Around for 172 years now, the company does business with over four billion customers in more than 180 countries. And it brings in $79 billion in annual sales from its ventures, 30% of which come from developing markets.
In addition:

Brands like its Pantene, Wella and Head & Shoulders account for one-fifth of all hair product sales around the world.
Gillette … [visit site to read more]

Siemens Wins Railway Order

Posted: 04 Jan 2010 04:22 AM PST

Siemens AG (SI) won an order from the Russian Railways to supply 54 regional trains for the 2014 Winter Olympics in Sochi. The deal is valued at up to 580 million euros ($832 million).
 
A firm order worth around 410 million euros has been placed for the first 38 Desiro type trains, which will be manufactured entirely at the Siemens plant in Krefeld, Germany.
 
A preliminary contract has been signed for a further 16 units. These trains should then be partly built in … [visit site to read more]

Currencies Mount A Mini-Rally

Posted: 04 Jan 2010 08:45 AM PST

The chill that has settled down on us here in the Midwest, has tried to settle in on the currencies going into the end of the year… But… Here we are, it's 2010, a new year, and new ideas for the currencies… We'll have to wait-n-see what comes out this week and next, for there will be plenty of pundits, analysts, writers, and so on, that come out with their forecasts for 2010… Me? The song remains the same, folks… Fundamentally speaking, there's only one direction the dollar … [visit site to read more]

Boeing Wins Small Contract

Posted: 04 Jan 2010 03:33 AM PST

Boeing Co. (BA) won a $12.4 million contract from the U.S. Navy to repair various components of the F/A-18 Super Hornet fighter jet. The work will be performed in Lemoore, California, Cecil Field, Florida and Philadelphia. The company expects to finish the work by Dec 31, 2010.
 
Boeing's F/A-18 Super Hornet fighter jet was built in 1998 by a team including Northrop Grumman Corp. (NOC), General Electric Co. (GE) and Raytheon Co. (RTN). The jet is being actively considered for … [visit site to read more]
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