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Britain’s FTSE 100 (like the S&P 500) is a measure of blue-chip respectability signaling good governance, and so on. Now, some businessmen have figured out how to break into this index without a solid record. First, they buy a firm…
Read MoreWhile some are unemployed by choice and some due to a lack of necessary skills, I do not think it’s that many. Here’s why. There are 14 million unemployed and 3.1 million job openings, or 4.6 jobless workers per opening.…
Read MoreChina has 46K miles of highways; we have barely 47K. China plans to build out to 112.5K miles by ’30 yet there are just one-third as many cars in China as here, and worse, Chinese highways have high tolls, to…
Read MoreObama’s latest effort to help underwater homeowners, who are current, refinance at lower rates will help, but, it’s no panacea. Estimates are that a million households will take advantage of this plan and will, on average, save $2,500/year. If all…
Read MoreThe Friday File: The US economy has lost manufacturing jobs as foreigners can often make things more cheaply than we can. What manufacturing remains is increasingly high end; it’s less easily outsourced. But, there are exceptions. In Americus, GA 50…
Read MoreEarlier this week, the Congress passed free trade agreements with Columbia, Panama and South Korea. Passage may be hailed as a political achievement for promoting principals of free trade and for shoring up allies. Unfortunately, it will not do much…
Read MoreBig bank stocks are all down but shares of Goldman Sachs and Morgan Stanley especially so. Regulatory changes like the Volcker Rule prohibiting proprietary trading hurt all big banks but especially GS and MS as they rely more heavily on…
Read MoreBecause Sprint now sells iphones (as of 10/1/11), its bottom line will take a hit. The extra subsidy cost of selling an iphone to an existing Sprint customer (rather than a Droid phone) is $100. Based on data from Verizon…
Read MoreThe Friday File: Baseball’s 3 teams with the highest payrolls are watching the playoffs on TV. The Yankees ($202.6 million) were upset by the Detroit Tigers ($105.7 million), while the Philadelphia Phillies ($172.9 million) were upset by the St Louis…
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