EUOBSERVER / BRUSSELS - Norway, Iceland and Liechtenstein on Wednesday (28 July) agreed to donate €1.79 billion to the EU's poorer southern and eastern members in the coming five years for green projects, labour rights, research and human resources, a top-up of 22 percent compared to the previous period.
iceland? i thought they were flat broke! ~"When an inner situation is not made conscious, it appears outside as fate." Karl Jung~
Iceland's government said it's a long way off defaulting on its debt payments after Moody's Investors Service warned it may lower the island's credit grade to junk, arguing lenders could require state support. Moody's is "taking it too far," Economy MinisterGylfi Magnusson said in an interview yesterday, after the rating service cut the outlook on Iceland's Baa3 foreign currency debt to negative. Moody's said it will lower the rating to junk if a June court ruling banning some foreign loans hurts the recovery or forces the government to raise debt levels by bailing out the banks.... Iceland's foreign debt is graded junk by Fitch Ratings, while Standard & Poor's gives the island its lowest investment grade. A June 16 decision by the Supreme Court, banning loans indexed to foreign-exchange rates, may require the state to bail out the banks a second time since 2008, Moody's said. That would add to the government's debt burden, which will reach 150 percent of gross domestic product this year, the rating company estimates.... Finance Minister Steingrimur Sigfusson on July 7 said the June ruling may cost Iceland's banks as much as $4.3 billion, equivalent to a third of the island's economic output. A July 23 decision by the District Court of Reykjavik to allow banks to raise interest rates on loans affected by the Supreme Court's ruling may limit those losses to $1.1 billion, Financial Supervisory Authority Director Gunnar Andersen said. Some of Iceland's lenders may be unable to meet the regulator's 16 percent capital adequacy requirement because of the foreign loan ruling, Andersen said in a July 14 interview. Magnusson said then his government would suffer a "severe blow" if called on to recapitalize the banks, though he didn't rule out financial support.... "Certainly there's risk involved if the contractual rates are applied, but that's a distant possibility," Magnusson said. "Although it might be prudent of those who evaluate the risk to take that into account, I think that's such a farfetched outcome that I don't think the grade can be predominantly based on that." Icesave At the same time, the government has yet to resolve a dispute with the U.K. and Dutch on how to cover depositor claims worth about $5.1 billion. Failure to settle the claims may prompt the International Monetary Fund and other lenders to withhold future disbursements, Moody's said. Read more...
Moody's is "taking it too far," Economy MinisterGylfi Magnusson said in an interview yesterday, after the rating service cut the outlook on Iceland's Baa3 foreign currency debt to negative. Moody's said it will lower the rating to junk if a June court ruling banning some foreign loans hurts the recovery or forces the government to raise debt levels by bailing out the banks....
Iceland's foreign debt is graded junk by Fitch Ratings, while Standard & Poor's gives the island its lowest investment grade. A June 16 decision by the Supreme Court, banning loans indexed to foreign-exchange rates, may require the state to bail out the banks a second time since 2008, Moody's said. That would add to the government's debt burden, which will reach 150 percent of gross domestic product this year, the rating company estimates....
Finance Minister Steingrimur Sigfusson on July 7 said the June ruling may cost Iceland's banks as much as $4.3 billion, equivalent to a third of the island's economic output. A July 23 decision by the District Court of Reykjavik to allow banks to raise interest rates on loans affected by the Supreme Court's ruling may limit those losses to $1.1 billion, Financial Supervisory Authority Director Gunnar Andersen said.
Some of Iceland's lenders may be unable to meet the regulator's 16 percent capital adequacy requirement because of the foreign loan ruling, Andersen said in a July 14 interview. Magnusson said then his government would suffer a "severe blow" if called on to recapitalize the banks, though he didn't rule out financial support....
"Certainly there's risk involved if the contractual rates are applied, but that's a distant possibility," Magnusson said. "Although it might be prudent of those who evaluate the risk to take that into account, I think that's such a farfetched outcome that I don't think the grade can be predominantly based on that."
Icesave
At the same time, the government has yet to resolve a dispute with the U.K. and Dutch on how to cover depositor claims worth about $5.1 billion. Failure to settle the claims may prompt the International Monetary Fund and other lenders to withhold future disbursements, Moody's said.
Read more...
Possibly related and recent speculation: Best Energy in Reykjavik Diversity is the key to economic and political evolution.
Ross Beaty,CEO of Magma Energy, that bought the HS ORka powerplant in ICeland,has offered Bjork,a 25 % share in HS Orka. Mr Beaty says that he offers Bjork the share at the same price as Magma Energy got it from HS ORka. Bjork has seen his offer and answered " dear ross noticed your message for me you offering me shares in hs orka shows that you totally miss my point i feel this company should not be privatized , it should be given back to the people . therefore i am not interested in shares . but if i would get the same deal as you , a 70% bulletloan from icelanders to buy usage of their own resources , i might reconsider , who wouldn´t ? you didn't really put your money where your mouth is , did you ? good bye björk P.s. I also saw in financial times when you asked me , personally , to pop over to your office and you would lower how long magma´s usage of our resources is going to be . This only reveals how willing you are to cut deals outside law and order " Read more...
" dear ross noticed your message for me you offering me shares in hs orka shows that you totally miss my point i feel this company should not be privatized , it should be given back to the people . therefore i am not interested in shares . but if i would get the same deal as you , a 70% bulletloan from icelanders to buy usage of their own resources , i might reconsider , who wouldn´t ? you didn't really put your money where your mouth is , did you ? good bye björk P.s. I also saw in financial times when you asked me , personally , to pop over to your office and you would lower how long magma´s usage of our resources is going to be . This only reveals how willing you are to cut deals outside law and order "
björk
P.s. I also saw in financial times when you asked me , personally , to pop over to your office and you would lower how long magma´s usage of our resources is going to be . This only reveals how willing you are to cut deals outside law and order "
What, in your view, is the Magma deal all about? It is a very important case for Iceland. An international corporation is trying to buy up the exclusive rights to our natural resources. We were warned almost immediately after the banking collapse that this would happen, for instance by Paul Hawken and Joseph Stiglitz. Naomi Klein also discusses this kind of situation thoroughly in `The Shock Doctrine'. It is widely known that nations that find themselves in trouble get besieged by vultures that want to take advantage of their situation and make an easy profit. They start off being all nice and reasonable, gaining the locals' trust - "here to help" - and then... You know all about Magma's history in Peru, right? It is swaddled with human rights violations and disrespect to local customs, unions, law and regulation. The list goes on... Some might say that Magma making rotten deals with Peru is irrelevant, that Iceland is no Peru. "We are not a third world country." But the deals we've made with them are just so bad; a large part of Magma's downpayment comes in the form of a bullet loan from HS Orka itself with 1.5% interest for seven years, with HS Orka shares as collateral. It's a joke. Read more...
It is a very important case for Iceland. An international corporation is trying to buy up the exclusive rights to our natural resources. We were warned almost immediately after the banking collapse that this would happen, for instance by Paul Hawken and Joseph Stiglitz. Naomi Klein also discusses this kind of situation thoroughly in `The Shock Doctrine'. It is widely known that nations that find themselves in trouble get besieged by vultures that want to take advantage of their situation and make an easy profit. They start off being all nice and reasonable, gaining the locals' trust - "here to help" - and then...
You know all about Magma's history in Peru, right? It is swaddled with human rights violations and disrespect to local customs, unions, law and regulation. The list goes on... Some might say that Magma making rotten deals with Peru is irrelevant, that Iceland is no Peru. "We are not a third world country." But the deals we've made with them are just so bad; a large part of Magma's downpayment comes in the form of a bullet loan from HS Orka itself with 1.5% interest for seven years, with HS Orka shares as collateral. It's a joke.
AFP - Italy's lower house of parliament Thursday approved an unpopular austerity package totalling 25 billion euros (32 billion dollars) aimed at bringing the public deficit under control and reassuring markets. Sponsored by the centre-right government of Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi, the law passed by 321 to 270 votes, with four abstentions. The law was approved by the Senate two weeks ago and was the object of a confidence vote on Wednesday. The plan calls for a three-year salary freeze for public workers, a 10 percent cut in ministry budgets, less funding for local governments and more action to combat tax evasion, among other measures. The plan also raises the retirement age of public and private workers by more than three years by 2050.
(Reuters) - Britain announced plans to scrap the fixed retirement age next year, saying it wanted to give people the chance to work beyond 65, but business leaders warned the move would create serious problems. Currently, employers can force staff to retire at the age of 65 regardless of their circumstances and without having to pay any financial compensation.Under the government's consultation proposals, the default retirement age (DRA) would begin to be phased out from April 2011 and come to an end by October next year.Ministers said the move was designed to give people more choice as they enjoyed longer and healthier lives.However, with Britain needing to cut public spending to address a record budget deficit, the move would see people paying tax for longer.
(Reuters) - Britain announced plans to scrap the fixed retirement age next year, saying it wanted to give people the chance to work beyond 65, but business leaders warned the move would create serious problems.
Currently, employers can force staff to retire at the age of 65 regardless of their circumstances and without having to pay any financial compensation.
Under the government's consultation proposals, the default retirement age (DRA) would begin to be phased out from April 2011 and come to an end by October next year.
Ministers said the move was designed to give people more choice as they enjoyed longer and healthier lives.
However, with Britain needing to cut public spending to address a record budget deficit, the move would see people paying tax for longer.
Nick Clegg, the Liberal Democrat leader and deputy prime minister, has admitted that he changed his mind about the timing of spending cuts prior to the general election, despite publicly telling the electorate weeks before the poll that early deep cuts would be "economic masochism".In what was seen as the biggest policy reversal of the coalition negotiations, the Lib Dems abandoned their policy of maintaining the government's economic stimulus through this financial year and backed a tougher Tory plan instead.
Nick Clegg, the Liberal Democrat leader and deputy prime minister, has admitted that he changed his mind about the timing of spending cuts prior to the general election, despite publicly telling the electorate weeks before the poll that early deep cuts would be "economic masochism".
In what was seen as the biggest policy reversal of the coalition negotiations, the Lib Dems abandoned their policy of maintaining the government's economic stimulus through this financial year and backed a tougher Tory plan instead.
One of the things that is notable is that the Westminster representatives of the LDP are noticeably more right wing than their membership. The "Orange book group" (nothing to do with CD encoding) is an economic right wing set of ideas for socially liberal fiscal conservatives (where have we heard that before ?) and isvery influential in Westminster LDP circles, but seems to be reviled in the wider membership. I suspect that the right wing enthusiasms of the Westminster MPs have done for the party.
It is a shame. There will be no party here that is unashamedly socially liberal. keep to the Fen Causeway
Migeru:
Just looking at their websites, Clegg appears bland. I like this from Chris HuhneI want to lead a party that is radical, green, honest and angry about the gross unfairness in Britain. We must change not just the Government, but our democracy and our society.Apparently most Lib Dem members cannot see much in the way of policy differences between the two other than their positions on Trident, so they decide on things like character, judgement or background. I was a bit surprised that actually Trident was mentioned as the deciding issue by a number of people I talked to.
I want to lead a party that is radical, green, honest and angry about the gross unfairness in Britain. We must change not just the Government, but our democracy and our society.
there has been a bit of an internal foreign policy debate among the UK Liberal Democrats on the issue of Trident. One side advocates not replacing the Trident deployment. The other side advocates replacing them in order to use them as bargaining chips in future negotiations of global nuclear disarmament. I am not convinced about the bargaining chip argument. Apparently this was one of the few substantive policy differences that most people saw between Nick Clegg and Chris Huhne during the recent leadership contest, and the guy with the bargaining chip won. I have to say I was mystified that this was the biggest difference people saw between the candidates, and even more mystified that anyone would claim to have decided their vote on the basis of this issue.
Apparently this was one of the few substantive policy differences that most people saw between Nick Clegg and Chris Huhne during the recent leadership contest, and the guy with the bargaining chip won. I have to say I was mystified that this was the biggest difference people saw between the candidates, and even more mystified that anyone would claim to have decided their vote on the basis of this issue.
I am not convinced about the bargaining chip argument.That would be because it's complete horseshit. anyone that uses it is either fool or a bald-faced liar who thinks that you're a fool.
I am not convinced about the bargaining chip argument.
Interestingly, the latest development on Trident involves Tory budget austerity. Helen just yesterday:
Fox has obviously tried to ring fence Trident and Osborne has swatted him down, effectively telling him that he has to justify all of the cuts to the military himself. Or cut trident.
European regulators kicked off the biggest overhaul of the region's securities regulations in years on Thursday, calling for a wide range of reforms to bolster the transparency of Europe's increasingly fragmented equities and over-the-counter derivatives.The call, by the Committee of European Securities Regulators (Cesr), included proposals for changes to the Market in Financial Instruments Directive (Mifid). Enacted in 2007, Mifid sparked competition against the region's established stock exchanges - but that has resulted in what many market participants say is a confusing picture, as markets have fragmented across multiple new venues.Among key measures urged by Cesr is the introduction of a mandatory "consolidated tape" in Europe showing post-trade data across all equity markets and tighter rules governing "dark pool" trading venues operated by big banks.
The call, by the Committee of European Securities Regulators (Cesr), included proposals for changes to the Market in Financial Instruments Directive (Mifid). Enacted in 2007, Mifid sparked competition against the region's established stock exchanges - but that has resulted in what many market participants say is a confusing picture, as markets have fragmented across multiple new venues.
Among key measures urged by Cesr is the introduction of a mandatory "consolidated tape" in Europe showing post-trade data across all equity markets and tighter rules governing "dark pool" trading venues operated by big banks.
California governor Arnold Schwarzenegger has declared a fiscal state of emergency, putting pressure on lawmakers to pass a state budget that is now more than a month overdue. California's economy, which is the eighth largest in the world, faces a budget deficit of $19bn (£12bn). Mr Schwarzenegger said that without a budget in place the state's government would run out of cash by October. He also ordered most state employees to take three days unpaid leave a month. Earlier this month, the governor ordered 200,000 state workers to be paid the minimum wage because no budget had been passed.
California's economy, which is the eighth largest in the world, faces a budget deficit of $19bn (£12bn).
Mr Schwarzenegger said that without a budget in place the state's government would run out of cash by October.
He also ordered most state employees to take three days unpaid leave a month.
Earlier this month, the governor ordered 200,000 state workers to be paid the minimum wage because no budget had been passed.
And you'll find any number of Californias who will defend this as getting rid of leaching public servants with $200k/yr salaries and gold plated limos and all that. The fact is that the roads are asphalt cobbles, the amenities rotting, and we loved to play 'school or prison' whilst there.
Euro zone economic sentiment rose strongly in July, buoyed by figures from Germany that point to a recovery as the currency area overcomes the sovereign debt crisis, but the outlook remains uncertain. The European Commission said its economic sentiment indicator for the 16-nation currency area rose to 101.3 in July, a 28-month high, from an upwardly revised 99.0 in June. Economists polled by Reuters expected the index to stay at 99.0.Economic morale is the latest in a string of indicators that have shown the currency area continues to recover from the worst economic crisis in decades, despite turbulence on its sovereign debt market and uncertainty about the health of banks.
The European Commission said its economic sentiment indicator for the 16-nation currency area rose to 101.3 in July, a 28-month high, from an upwardly revised 99.0 in June. Economists polled by Reuters expected the index to stay at 99.0.
Economic morale is the latest in a string of indicators that have shown the currency area continues to recover from the worst economic crisis in decades, despite turbulence on its sovereign debt market and uncertainty about the health of banks.
On Thursday, James Bullard, the president of the Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis, warned that the Fed's current policies were putting the American economy at risk of becoming "enmeshed in a Japanese-style deflationary outcome within the next several years." The warning by Mr. Bullard, who is a voting member of the Fed committee that determines interest rates, comes days after Ben S. Bernanke, the Fed chairman, said the central bank was prepared to do more to stimulate the economy if needed, though it had no immediate plans to do so.
The warning by Mr. Bullard, who is a voting member of the Fed committee that determines interest rates, comes days after Ben S. Bernanke, the Fed chairman, said the central bank was prepared to do more to stimulate the economy if needed, though it had no immediate plans to do so.
A swath of Europe's leading companies on Thursday reported stronger-than-expected earnings, underlining the strength of the corporate recovery across the continent.Heavyweight names such as Siemens, Royal Dutch Shell, Volkswagen and BASF all saw their second-quarter profits beat analysts' forecasts considerably....Analysts are expecting European earnings to rise about 25-35 per cent this year before tapering off and increasing 10-15 per cent next year.Industrial companies have led the recovery after a crushing fall in earnings last year. VW and BASF, Europe's largest carmaker and the world's biggest chemicals group, respectively, both saw their operating profits double as they benefited from strong growth in emerging markets such as China and a weaker euro.The solid results and good news last week in the banking sector is causing investors who shunned Europe for most of the year to think again.
Heavyweight names such as Siemens, Royal Dutch Shell, Volkswagen and BASF all saw their second-quarter profits beat analysts' forecasts considerably....Analysts are expecting European earnings to rise about 25-35 per cent this year before tapering off and increasing 10-15 per cent next year.
Industrial companies have led the recovery after a crushing fall in earnings last year. VW and BASF, Europe's largest carmaker and the world's biggest chemicals group, respectively, both saw their operating profits double as they benefited from strong growth in emerging markets such as China and a weaker euro.
The solid results and good news last week in the banking sector is causing investors who shunned Europe for most of the year to think again.
For the past three years in Europe, traders have watched as the share dealing landscape has changed beyond recognition.Thanks to reforms passed by the European Commission, competitors have emerged for national exchanges, while new rivals have proliferated, creating a spaghetti junction of trading venues, spewing out market data and prices. On Thursday, however, regulators fired their first salvo in attempting to bring more order to the markets. The Committee of European Securities Regulators kicked off the biggest overhaul of the region's securities regulations in years, calling for a wide range of reforms to bolster transparency of Europe's increasingly fragmented equities and over-the-counter derivatives markets.Among CESR's top recommendations was a call for the establishment of a central point where prices for shares traded across multiple venues can easily be seen - a so-called "consolidated tape".
Thanks to reforms passed by the European Commission, competitors have emerged for national exchanges, while new rivals have proliferated, creating a spaghetti junction of trading venues, spewing out market data and prices.
On Thursday, however, regulators fired their first salvo in attempting to bring more order to the markets.
The Committee of European Securities Regulators kicked off the biggest overhaul of the region's securities regulations in years, calling for a wide range of reforms to bolster transparency of Europe's increasingly fragmented equities and over-the-counter derivatives markets.
Among CESR's top recommendations was a call for the establishment of a central point where prices for shares traded across multiple venues can easily be seen - a so-called "consolidated tape".
This evening the SEC announced a massive fraud charge against Dallas-based investors The Wyly brothers....The gist of the allegations: The brothers Wyly (Samuel and Charles J.) used their various board seats and a network of offshore accounts to trade and conceal their holdings. From the SEC press release: The Securities and Exchange Commission today charged brothers Samuel E. Wyly and Charles J. Wyly, Jr. of Dallas with violating federal securities laws governing ownership and trading of securities by corporate insiders. The Wyly brothers reaped more than $550 million in undisclosed gains while sitting on corporate boards by trading stock in those public companies through hidden entities located in foreign jurisdictions to conceal their ownership and trading of those securities. The SEC alleges that the brothers created an elaborate sham system of trusts and subsidiary companies in the Isle of Man and the Cayman Islands to sell more than $750 million worth of stock in four public companies for which they were corporate directors. They also committed an insider trading violation in one of the companies for an unlawful gain of more than $31.7 million. Along with the Wylys, the SEC charged their attorney Michael C. French of Dallas and their stockbroker Louis J. Schaufele III of Dallas for their roles in the fraudulent scheme. French was on the board of directors at three of the companies. "The cloak of secrecy has been lifted from the complex web of foreign structures used by the Wylys to evade the securities laws," said Lorin L. Reisner, Deputy Director of the SEC's Division of Enforcement. "They used these structures to conceal hundreds of millions of dollars of gains in violation of the disclosure requirements for corporate insiders." According to the SEC's complaint, filed in U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York, the public companies the Wylys used in the scheme were Michaels Stores Inc., Sterling Software Inc., Sterling Commerce Inc., and Scottish Annuity & Life Holdings Ltd. (now known as Scottish Re Group Limited). The SEC's complaint alleges that the Wylys and French knew or were reckless in not knowing their legal obligations as public company directors and greater-than-five-percent beneficial owners. The laws require such persons to report holdings and trading in their companies' securities on Schedule 13D and Form 4, which are filed with the SEC. The Wylys and French also knew or were reckless in not knowing that the investing public routinely uses such disclosures to gauge the sentiment of public companies' insiders and large shareholders about the financial condition and prospects of those companies, relying on those disclosures when making investment decisions. The SEC alleges that the Wylys and French systematically and falsely created the impression that the Wylys' entire holdings and trading were limited to the fraction that they held and traded domestically. By depriving existing shareholders and potential investors of information deemed material by the federal securities laws, the Wylys were able to sell -- in large-block trades alone -- more than 14 million shares of issuer securities over a period of 13 years for undisclosed gains in excess of $550 million. The SEC further alleges that the sales generating most of these illicit gains were made pursuant to materially false or misleading SEC filings.
From the SEC press release: The Securities and Exchange Commission today charged brothers Samuel E. Wyly and Charles J. Wyly, Jr. of Dallas with violating federal securities laws governing ownership and trading of securities by corporate insiders. The Wyly brothers reaped more than $550 million in undisclosed gains while sitting on corporate boards by trading stock in those public companies through hidden entities located in foreign jurisdictions to conceal their ownership and trading of those securities. The SEC alleges that the brothers created an elaborate sham system of trusts and subsidiary companies in the Isle of Man and the Cayman Islands to sell more than $750 million worth of stock in four public companies for which they were corporate directors. They also committed an insider trading violation in one of the companies for an unlawful gain of more than $31.7 million. Along with the Wylys, the SEC charged their attorney Michael C. French of Dallas and their stockbroker Louis J. Schaufele III of Dallas for their roles in the fraudulent scheme. French was on the board of directors at three of the companies. "The cloak of secrecy has been lifted from the complex web of foreign structures used by the Wylys to evade the securities laws," said Lorin L. Reisner, Deputy Director of the SEC's Division of Enforcement. "They used these structures to conceal hundreds of millions of dollars of gains in violation of the disclosure requirements for corporate insiders." According to the SEC's complaint, filed in U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York, the public companies the Wylys used in the scheme were Michaels Stores Inc., Sterling Software Inc., Sterling Commerce Inc., and Scottish Annuity & Life Holdings Ltd. (now known as Scottish Re Group Limited).
The SEC alleges that the brothers created an elaborate sham system of trusts and subsidiary companies in the Isle of Man and the Cayman Islands to sell more than $750 million worth of stock in four public companies for which they were corporate directors. They also committed an insider trading violation in one of the companies for an unlawful gain of more than $31.7 million.
Along with the Wylys, the SEC charged their attorney Michael C. French of Dallas and their stockbroker Louis J. Schaufele III of Dallas for their roles in the fraudulent scheme. French was on the board of directors at three of the companies.
"The cloak of secrecy has been lifted from the complex web of foreign structures used by the Wylys to evade the securities laws," said Lorin L. Reisner, Deputy Director of the SEC's Division of Enforcement. "They used these structures to conceal hundreds of millions of dollars of gains in violation of the disclosure requirements for corporate insiders."
According to the SEC's complaint, filed in U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York, the public companies the Wylys used in the scheme were Michaels Stores Inc., Sterling Software Inc., Sterling Commerce Inc., and Scottish Annuity & Life Holdings Ltd. (now known as Scottish Re Group Limited).
The SEC alleges that the Wylys and French systematically and falsely created the impression that the Wylys' entire holdings and trading were limited to the fraction that they held and traded domestically. By depriving existing shareholders and potential investors of information deemed material by the federal securities laws, the Wylys were able to sell -- in large-block trades alone -- more than 14 million shares of issuer securities over a period of 13 years for undisclosed gains in excess of $550 million. The SEC further alleges that the sales generating most of these illicit gains were made pursuant to materially false or misleading SEC filings.
Ran Kivetz, a professor of marketing at Columbia Business School, has done research on consumer psychology. He says that consumers' brains lack a line that separates spending from saving. We [!] practice a certain amount of thrift so that we [!] can justify blowing a large sum frivolously, he says.... There is only so long we [!] can suppress our need to spend, Kivetz says. "It's just been a slow walk out of the woods," he says. "And it's so complicated. The things going on in Europe are frightening. There are problems with China, with our government debt, and bank debt. At the end of the day, people are saying, `There is still risk. I gotta cut back.' But this is not a typical [!] one-year recession. Life has to have some normalcy. I have to have some luxuries." Read more...
There is only so long we [!] can suppress our need to spend, Kivetz says.
"It's just been a slow walk out of the woods," he says. "And it's so complicated. The things going on in Europe are frightening. There are problems with China, with our government debt, and bank debt. At the end of the day, people are saying, `There is still risk. I gotta cut back.' But this is not a typical [!] one-year recession. Life has to have some normalcy. I have to have some luxuries."
Waiting lets Zuckerberg, 26, hone the skills needed to steer a company that issues quarterly results while facing criticism on such matters as user privacy. Facebook, valued at $24.9 billion, would use the time to propel its user base beyond the 500 million mark reached this month and add to sales that two of the people said may double to at least $1.4 billion in 2010 from $700 million to $800 million last year.... Startups are often urged to sell shares by employees and investors eager for a return on their equity. In Facebook's case, some of that pressure has been allayed by private sales, often facilitated by such exchanges as SecondMarket Inc. and SharesPost Inc., which help find buyers for startup shares. Read more...
Startups are often urged to sell shares by employees and investors eager for a return on their equity. In Facebook's case, some of that pressure has been allayed by private sales, often facilitated by such exchanges as SecondMarket Inc. and SharesPost Inc., which help find buyers for startup shares.
"We could imagine something akin to a Google AdWords-like model, where merchants can have featured placement based on latitude and longitude, time of the day, or day of the week," says Tristan Walker, head of business development for Foursquare. "We're still exploring, and encouraging all retailers to get on our platform and help us find the product that we could actually charge for."... Ideas for revenue streams are so far "pie-in-the-sky," according to Walker, but that doesn't mean Foursquare isn't working toward a financially-viable future. The service already charges for sponsored-badge integrations, and in addition to a potential Google AdWords-like service, Walker foresees a time when the New York-based start-up might "charge for really robust analytics that haven't been served before." Read more...
Ideas for revenue streams are so far "pie-in-the-sky," according to Walker, but that doesn't mean Foursquare isn't working toward a financially-viable future. The service already charges for sponsored-badge integrations, and in addition to a potential Google AdWords-like service, Walker foresees a time when the New York-based start-up might "charge for really robust analytics that haven't been served before."
Possibly related UIDs: secondmarket.com, "the largest centralized marketplace for illiquid assets" sharepost.com, "We make private equity liquid." Foursquare, rap sheet GOOG, Dividend? Diversity is the key to economic and political evolution.
"We are going to get all the money back that we invested in those car companies," Obama said on ABC's "The View" program. The industry's resurgence "tells a good story" about the U.S. economic recovery, he said.... Since GM and Chrysler exited bankruptcy a little more than a year ago, the industry -- including Ford Motor Co., which didn't seek federal aid -- has re-hired 55,000 workers after shedding 334,000 in the year before.... The administrations of Obama and his predecessor, George W. Bush, committed a total of $85 billion to rescue the automakers, aid suppliers and prop up the financing arms of GM and Chrysler. About $67 billion in loans and equity investments are still outstanding, according to administration figures.... The stock offering [NEW! GM IPO] is central to the government's expectations of getting repaid. For the U.S. to recoup all of its $42.2 billion investment in GM, the company would have to be worth at least $66 billion and possibly as much as $80 billion, depending on when the government sells its stock. GM's implied equity value is about $53 billion based on its bond price.... The president's sales pitch [!] is tempered by some sobering forecasts. While the industry has added 55,000 jobs since June 2009, auto manufacturing in Michigan is on a decline. A 2009 University of Michigan study found that the state would end up with 95,500 blue-collar auto manufacturing jobs by the end of 2011, compared with 172,350 in 2008. The state's unemployment rate was 13.2 percent in June [2010] compared with the national rate of 9.5 percent. Read more...
Since GM and Chrysler exited bankruptcy a little more than a year ago, the industry -- including Ford Motor Co., which didn't seek federal aid -- has re-hired 55,000 workers after shedding 334,000 in the year before....
The administrations of Obama and his predecessor, George W. Bush, committed a total of $85 billion to rescue the automakers, aid suppliers and prop up the financing arms of GM and Chrysler. About $67 billion in loans and equity investments are still outstanding, according to administration figures....
The stock offering [NEW! GM IPO] is central to the government's expectations of getting repaid. For the U.S. to recoup all of its $42.2 billion investment in GM, the company would have to be worth at least $66 billion and possibly as much as $80 billion, depending on when the government sells its stock. GM's implied equity value is about $53 billion based on its bond price....
The president's sales pitch [!] is tempered by some sobering forecasts. While the industry has added 55,000 jobs since June 2009, auto manufacturing in Michigan is on a decline. A 2009 University of Michigan study found that the state would end up with 95,500 blue-collar auto manufacturing jobs by the end of 2011, compared with 172,350 in 2008. The state's unemployment rate was 13.2 percent in June [2010] compared with the national rate of 9.5 percent.
