| Black Friday CDS/Equity Combos Jim Delaney submits: Today is “Black Friday”. In an economy where 70% of GDP is a result of consumer spending do you not think the people that name these things could have come up with a little better moniker? Why black? Black because this is the part of the year where retailers finally begin to turn a profit or “move into the black”? Black because the workers in the stores that open ridiculously early and close ridiculously late are in very dark moods by the time the whole thing is over? I am not marketing executive but I would think that if I was going to try to get someone to spend oodles of money I would describe the day on which I propose to do that with a color other than black. Even in New York City where it reigns’s supreme as the color du jour. For me today is “Black Friday” because I have to start thinking about all the things I have to buy for all those people and figure out exactly who gets what and why. Talk about a dark mood!Complete Story » seekingalpha.com |
Chris Dodd's Financial Regulation: Be Carefull What You Wish For Jim Delaney submits: As Chris Dodd prepares for retirement, possibly to his 10-acre plot on Inishnee Island on Galway Bay (a story for another day as while it is part and parcel of the seedy side of Washington I can’t, for the life of me, figure out how to work the CDS market into it), he will attempt to bring a financial reform bill that can actually pass both houses. The bill was originally intended to fix every last thing that was wrong with Wall St., the credit card companies, the mortgage industry and a whole host of other businesses whose raw material and finished product is the $ sign. As time passes and emotions cool, Dodd’s bill is having a tougher and tougher time reaching the finish line. This has been decried by some as evidence that no meaningful regulation will be enacted and we will be that much more vulnerable to the next bubble, pop and crash. I will leave out the part here that if the regulation that existed prior to 2007 was enforced as intended and not by those who hoped to eventually work for those they were regulating, we probably wouldn’t be where we are today.Complete Story » seekingalpha.com |
On the Auto Industry's 'Recovery' Jim Delaney submits: Total Vehicle Sales coming in at over 11MM for April marks the 7th straight month above the 10MM mark, the second with an 11 handle and a marked improvement over the 9MM of April a year ago. Add to this the seasonally adjusted sales rate for 1Q10 of 11MM vehicles and you have what Jesse Toprak, an analyst for TrueCar Inc., calls “a full-blown recovery in the automotive industry.” What has been good for the car makers has also been good for the auto-parts makers with American Axle (AXL) recently reporting a profit of $0.22 per share compared with a loss of $0.59 a share a year ago. AXL’s CFO, Michael Simonte attributed cuts made during the crisis for the swing to profitability saying:Complete Story » seekingalpha.com |
Toyota: Long-Term Play on Transportation Fuels of Future Kevin McElroy submits: We might quietly scoff at the Toyota (TM) Prius drivers - after all, the car only gets slightly better mileage than the average car in its class, so it's not all that special as far as environmentalism goes. But don't scoff too hard, because it just might be that we'll all be driving hybrid cars in the not-so distant future.Complete Story » seekingalpha.com |
UPS Delivers Jim Van Meerten submits: You have to love United Parcel Service (UPS). They are continuing to grow in the international market by almost 20% a year. Their huge cash position allows them to buy back shares; over 7 million share have been bought back already. They are beating the pants off the US Postal Service which seems; at least in my mail box, to only delivers junk mail these days. United Parcel Service, Inc. is the world's largest express carrier, the world's largest package delivery company and a leading global provider of specialized transportation and logistics services. Their primary business is the time-definite delivery of packages and documents throughout the United States and in over 200 other countries and territories. They have established a vast and reliable global transportation infrastructure,developed a comprehensive, competitive and guaranteed portfolio of services and consistently supported these services with advanced technology.Complete Story » seekingalpha.com |