billandamy
New Member
- Oct 22, 2007
- 3,043
- Boat Info
- 2008 205 sport. MonsterTower wakeboard tower.
- Engines
- 5.0 mpi (260 hp) alpha one drive with 19p ss prop.
To me, this is all bullchit. The government is opening too many doors giving out billions of dollars to rescue companies at the expense of the taxpayer who is already burdened. You have GMAC wanting "banking status" so THEY can reap the corporate welfare dividends as well. When does it end?
http://articles.moneycentral.msn.com/Investing/Dispatch/market-dispatches-112008.aspx
Dow off 445; S&P hits 11-year low
Energy stocks pull stocks lower after crude drops below $50. Citigroup falls below $5. A rally stalls after opposition scuttles a deal to help automakers. New jobless claims hit a 16-year high.
By Charley Blaine and Elizabeth Strott
Stocks plummeted again today, with the Standard & Poor's 500 Index falling to levels last seen in April 1997.
Crude oil fell below $50 for the first time since May 2005 and sent energy stocks overall 10% lower.
Meanwhile financial stocks were battered, with Citigroup (C, news, msgs) down 25.3% to $4.78, and there was general dismay that Congress and the Bush administration couldn't come up with a bailout package for the auto industry.
At the close, the S&P 500 was down 54 points, or 6.7% to 753, its worst close since April 14, 1997. The close also was below 776.76, the closing low in the bear market that erupted after the dot-com bust and the Sept. 11, 2001 terror attacks.
The Dow Jones industrials were down 443 points, or 5.6%, to 7,554. The NasdaqComposite Index was down 69 points, or 5%, to 1,318.Since closing at an all-time high of 1,565 in October 2007, the S&P 500 has lost $6.69 trillionin value, according to S&P index analyst Howard Silverblatt. That loss is nearly $1 trillion more than the $5.76 trillion lost during the entire 2000-02 bear market.
This morning's report showed that initial jobless claims rose by 27,000 last week to 542,000 -- a 16-year high and higher than the 503,000 economists had expected.
Continuing jobless claims jumped by 109,000 to 4.01 million last week, according to the Labor Department data -- the highest level since Dec. 12, 1982. The economy has shed nearly 1.2 million jobs so far this year.
Get free, real-time stock quotes on MSN Money
Asian stocks had tumbled overnight. Japan's Nikkei 225 Index tanked 6.9%, the Hong Kong Hang Seng Index fell 5.1%, and the MSCI Asia Pacific Index lost 5.2%.
In Europe, the picture was not much better. London's FTSE 100 Index fell 3.2%, the Paris CAC 40 Index lost 2.9%, and the broader DJ Stoxx 600 Index was down 3%.
Personal computer maker Dell (DELL, news, msgs) was to report fiscal-third-quarter earnings after the close. The stock was down 1.6% to $10.55.
Oil falls below $50 a barrel
Crude oil continued its downward spiral today, falling $2.85 to $50.77 a barrel after closing at $53.62 a barrel Wednesday, the lowest level since January 2007.
Earlier this morning, oil fell to $49.91 a barrel, falling below the $50 level for the first time in more than three years.
Demand for oil has been waning in recent months amid the global economic slowdown, and an increase in supplies has not helped the situation.
"Yesterday Uncle Sam reported a large build in crude oil supplies," oil analyst Stephen Schork wrote today in his daily note, the Schork Report. "The reported build fell within the crowd's expectations. It was the eighth consecutive reported build. As a result, over the last two months crude oil stocks have increased by 23.4 million barrels or 8.1%."
Oil closed at a record $145.08 a barrel on July 11.
The average price of gasoline has fallen as well. Motorists were paying $2.02 for a gallon of regular unleaded, according to the AAA Fuel Gauge report, down more than 50% from a record $4.14 a gallon on July 17.
Auto deal coming?
There may be some hope for the automakers after all.
Reports circulated this afternoon that some members of the Senate had reached a bipartisan agreement to bail out the troubled U.S. automakers. The group includes Republicans Chris Bond of Missouri and George Voinovich of Ohio and Debbie Stabenow and Carl Levin of Michigan.
The Wall Street Journal said that the plan would speed release of $25 billion in already approved loans designed to help the industry meet higher fuel-economy standards.
But similar approaches have been opposed by senior Democrats, including Speaker Nancy Pelosi. They've pushed an alternative measure that would carve $25 billion for the industry out of the $700 billion financial rescue fund. The compromise bill faces other hurdles, especially from liberals who don't want any retreat from environmental mandates on the industry.
At about 1:30 p.m. ET, news reports said auto bailout legislation would not be taken up until after Thanksgiving.
Late Wednesday, Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, D-Nev., canceled a vote on an emergency bailout for the Big Three U.S. automakers. The Senate had wanted the bailout funds to come from the $700 billion financial rescue plan that was passed and signed into law in October.
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Earlier, at a news conference in Detroit, United Auto Workers President Ron Gettelfinger said the Bush administration and Congress need to come to an agreement on aid for the domestic auto industry because "inaction is simply not an option."
Gettelfinger acknowledged there is disagreement about how aid should be given, but "both the Bush administration and congressional leaders agree that immediate assistance is needed, and the cost of not acting would be devastating."
Gettelfinger says without help, one or more of the Detroit Three automakers could collapse by the end of this year, and "the costs that would come from this are just too great."
Top executives from General Motors (GM, news, msgs), Ford Motor (F, news, msgs) and Chrysler pleaded their case to Congress Tuesday and Wednesday as the industry struggles to keep its head above water amid plunging sales and tight credit markets.
The Big Three have asked for a $25 billion bridge loan to avert bankruptcies. GM and Chrysler have said they are running out of money, with GM possibly running out of cash by the end of the year, without assistance.
Shares of GM and Ford turned higher after sinking earlier today. GM was up 9% to $3.04; GM had been down 21% earlier this morning. Ford was up 18.3% to $1.49. Chrysler is private and does not trade.
One expert blamed the most recent declines in the stock market on the automakers.
"The continuing soap opera that's playing out in Washington . . . is sowing further uncertainty," Marshall Front, chairman of Front Barnett Associates said. "I think it's probably preoccupying most people at this point."
Stock Charts (Year)
General Motors
Ford Motor
The debate in Congress was heated.
"Maybe you can tell us what you're actually going to do to sell cars people want," Rep. Gary Ackerman, D-N.Y., said Wednesday. "Somebody heard that we're giving out free money in Washington. They're showing up from all over the place. But you don't want to put your last tourniquet on a dead guy."
Others urged bankruptcy for the automakers.
"If General Motors, Ford and Chrysler get the bailout their chief executives asked for . . . you can kiss the American automotive industry goodbye," Mitt Romney, former governor of Massachusetts, wrote in an op-ed in The New York Times Wednesday. "A managed bankruptcy may be the only path to the fundamental restructuring the industry needs."
In September, Congress approved $25 billion in loans to the auto industry to help them convert to more fuel-efficient vehicles.
GM CEO Rick Wagoner hinted that he would step down if the government asked him to in exchange for aid.
"I'll always do what's right for the company," Wagoner told Bloomberg Television Wednesday. "But even more critical during a difficult time period is having the best possible management team. We have a good team at GM. That's not what I would recommend."
In testimony Wednesday before the House Financial Services Committee, Wagoner said 3 million jobs would be lost in the first year if the automakers went under.
More ugly economic data
There's plenty of bad news to keep investors worried today.
A report on manufacturing in the Philadelphia area showed continued deterioration in the sector. The Federal Reserve Bank of Philadelphia manufacturing index fell to a reading of negative 39.3 in November, from a reading of negative 37.5 in October. In September, the index showed expansion, with a reading of 3.8.
Learn how to invest with our New Investor Center
Meanwhile, the Conference Board's report on leading economic indicators provided more evidence of the economic downturn. The index fell 0.8% in October, following a 0.1% gain in September.
The Conference Board's index is designed to predict economic activity six to nine months out by incorporating economic data including jobless claims, manufacturers' orders and personal income.
"The weakness in the economy shows no signs of relenting," Maxwell Clarke, chief U.S. economist at IDEAglobal, told Bloomberg News. "We lost the lifeline when credit dried up. We'll still be in a recession until the second quarter of 2009."
Citi gets a confidence boost -- but plunges anyway
A day after Citigroup (C, news, msgs) shares plummeted 23% -- its biggest one-day percentage decline ever -- the bank got an injection of confidence from one of its biggest stakeholders.
Saudi Arabian billionaire Prince Alwaleed bin Talal took advantage of the decline in the stock price and bought shares. The prince said he will increase his stake in Citigroup to 5% from his current stake of just less than 4%.
Stock Chart (Year)
Citigroup
In a statement, Prince Alwaleed expressed "his full and complete support of Citi management, led by Vikram Pandit, and believes they are taking all the necessary steps to position the company to withstand the challenges facing the banking industry and the global economy."
But the move did little to help Citigroup stock: It fell 16.7% to $5.33 this afternoon. The stock is down 77% since the beginning of the year.
On Wednesday, Citigroup said it was buying the remaining $17.4 billion in assets in its structured investment vehicles -- investment products that dealt heavily in risky debt. Earlier this week, the bank said it will cut 52,000 to 53,000 jobs.
Citi has raised $50 billion in private capital, the bank's statement said, in addition to the $25 billion that the U.S. government has provided under the Troubled Asset Relief Program.
GMAC wants to be a bank
GMAC, the financing arm of General Motors, is the latest company to apply to the Federal Reserve for bank holding status.
The company wants the new status so that it can access the government's $700 billion in rescue funds.
"As a bank holding company, GMAC would obtain increased flexibility and stability to fulfill its core mission of providing automotive and mortgage financing to consumers and businesses," GMAC said in a statement.
Goldman Sachs (GS, news, msgs) and Morgan Stanley (MS, news, msgs) are two other companies that made the switch in recent weeks to access the bailout money.
http://articles.moneycentral.msn.com/Investing/Dispatch/market-dispatches-112008.aspx
Dow off 445; S&P hits 11-year low
Energy stocks pull stocks lower after crude drops below $50. Citigroup falls below $5. A rally stalls after opposition scuttles a deal to help automakers. New jobless claims hit a 16-year high.
By Charley Blaine and Elizabeth Strott
Stocks plummeted again today, with the Standard & Poor's 500 Index falling to levels last seen in April 1997.
Crude oil fell below $50 for the first time since May 2005 and sent energy stocks overall 10% lower.
Meanwhile financial stocks were battered, with Citigroup (C, news, msgs) down 25.3% to $4.78, and there was general dismay that Congress and the Bush administration couldn't come up with a bailout package for the auto industry.
At the close, the S&P 500 was down 54 points, or 6.7% to 753, its worst close since April 14, 1997. The close also was below 776.76, the closing low in the bear market that erupted after the dot-com bust and the Sept. 11, 2001 terror attacks.
The Dow Jones industrials were down 443 points, or 5.6%, to 7,554. The NasdaqComposite Index was down 69 points, or 5%, to 1,318.Since closing at an all-time high of 1,565 in October 2007, the S&P 500 has lost $6.69 trillionin value, according to S&P index analyst Howard Silverblatt. That loss is nearly $1 trillion more than the $5.76 trillion lost during the entire 2000-02 bear market.
This morning's report showed that initial jobless claims rose by 27,000 last week to 542,000 -- a 16-year high and higher than the 503,000 economists had expected.
Continuing jobless claims jumped by 109,000 to 4.01 million last week, according to the Labor Department data -- the highest level since Dec. 12, 1982. The economy has shed nearly 1.2 million jobs so far this year.
Get free, real-time stock quotes on MSN Money
Asian stocks had tumbled overnight. Japan's Nikkei 225 Index tanked 6.9%, the Hong Kong Hang Seng Index fell 5.1%, and the MSCI Asia Pacific Index lost 5.2%.
In Europe, the picture was not much better. London's FTSE 100 Index fell 3.2%, the Paris CAC 40 Index lost 2.9%, and the broader DJ Stoxx 600 Index was down 3%.
Personal computer maker Dell (DELL, news, msgs) was to report fiscal-third-quarter earnings after the close. The stock was down 1.6% to $10.55.
Oil falls below $50 a barrel
Crude oil continued its downward spiral today, falling $2.85 to $50.77 a barrel after closing at $53.62 a barrel Wednesday, the lowest level since January 2007.
Earlier this morning, oil fell to $49.91 a barrel, falling below the $50 level for the first time in more than three years.
Demand for oil has been waning in recent months amid the global economic slowdown, and an increase in supplies has not helped the situation.
"Yesterday Uncle Sam reported a large build in crude oil supplies," oil analyst Stephen Schork wrote today in his daily note, the Schork Report. "The reported build fell within the crowd's expectations. It was the eighth consecutive reported build. As a result, over the last two months crude oil stocks have increased by 23.4 million barrels or 8.1%."
Oil closed at a record $145.08 a barrel on July 11.
The average price of gasoline has fallen as well. Motorists were paying $2.02 for a gallon of regular unleaded, according to the AAA Fuel Gauge report, down more than 50% from a record $4.14 a gallon on July 17.
Auto deal coming?
There may be some hope for the automakers after all.
Reports circulated this afternoon that some members of the Senate had reached a bipartisan agreement to bail out the troubled U.S. automakers. The group includes Republicans Chris Bond of Missouri and George Voinovich of Ohio and Debbie Stabenow and Carl Levin of Michigan.
The Wall Street Journal said that the plan would speed release of $25 billion in already approved loans designed to help the industry meet higher fuel-economy standards.
But similar approaches have been opposed by senior Democrats, including Speaker Nancy Pelosi. They've pushed an alternative measure that would carve $25 billion for the industry out of the $700 billion financial rescue fund. The compromise bill faces other hurdles, especially from liberals who don't want any retreat from environmental mandates on the industry.
At about 1:30 p.m. ET, news reports said auto bailout legislation would not be taken up until after Thanksgiving.
Late Wednesday, Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, D-Nev., canceled a vote on an emergency bailout for the Big Three U.S. automakers. The Senate had wanted the bailout funds to come from the $700 billion financial rescue plan that was passed and signed into law in October.
More from MSN Money
Home buying the old-fashioned way
Your guide to holiday tipping
5 money mistakes in a bad economy
Target to slash prices as sales slide
Smart risks for cautious investors
Best 'Black Friday' deals in years
Earlier, at a news conference in Detroit, United Auto Workers President Ron Gettelfinger said the Bush administration and Congress need to come to an agreement on aid for the domestic auto industry because "inaction is simply not an option."
Gettelfinger acknowledged there is disagreement about how aid should be given, but "both the Bush administration and congressional leaders agree that immediate assistance is needed, and the cost of not acting would be devastating."
Gettelfinger says without help, one or more of the Detroit Three automakers could collapse by the end of this year, and "the costs that would come from this are just too great."
Top executives from General Motors (GM, news, msgs), Ford Motor (F, news, msgs) and Chrysler pleaded their case to Congress Tuesday and Wednesday as the industry struggles to keep its head above water amid plunging sales and tight credit markets.
The Big Three have asked for a $25 billion bridge loan to avert bankruptcies. GM and Chrysler have said they are running out of money, with GM possibly running out of cash by the end of the year, without assistance.
Shares of GM and Ford turned higher after sinking earlier today. GM was up 9% to $3.04; GM had been down 21% earlier this morning. Ford was up 18.3% to $1.49. Chrysler is private and does not trade.
One expert blamed the most recent declines in the stock market on the automakers.
"The continuing soap opera that's playing out in Washington . . . is sowing further uncertainty," Marshall Front, chairman of Front Barnett Associates said. "I think it's probably preoccupying most people at this point."
Stock Charts (Year)
General Motors
Ford Motor
The debate in Congress was heated.
"Maybe you can tell us what you're actually going to do to sell cars people want," Rep. Gary Ackerman, D-N.Y., said Wednesday. "Somebody heard that we're giving out free money in Washington. They're showing up from all over the place. But you don't want to put your last tourniquet on a dead guy."
Others urged bankruptcy for the automakers.
"If General Motors, Ford and Chrysler get the bailout their chief executives asked for . . . you can kiss the American automotive industry goodbye," Mitt Romney, former governor of Massachusetts, wrote in an op-ed in The New York Times Wednesday. "A managed bankruptcy may be the only path to the fundamental restructuring the industry needs."
In September, Congress approved $25 billion in loans to the auto industry to help them convert to more fuel-efficient vehicles.
GM CEO Rick Wagoner hinted that he would step down if the government asked him to in exchange for aid.
"I'll always do what's right for the company," Wagoner told Bloomberg Television Wednesday. "But even more critical during a difficult time period is having the best possible management team. We have a good team at GM. That's not what I would recommend."
In testimony Wednesday before the House Financial Services Committee, Wagoner said 3 million jobs would be lost in the first year if the automakers went under.
More ugly economic data
There's plenty of bad news to keep investors worried today.
A report on manufacturing in the Philadelphia area showed continued deterioration in the sector. The Federal Reserve Bank of Philadelphia manufacturing index fell to a reading of negative 39.3 in November, from a reading of negative 37.5 in October. In September, the index showed expansion, with a reading of 3.8.
Learn how to invest with our New Investor Center
Meanwhile, the Conference Board's report on leading economic indicators provided more evidence of the economic downturn. The index fell 0.8% in October, following a 0.1% gain in September.
The Conference Board's index is designed to predict economic activity six to nine months out by incorporating economic data including jobless claims, manufacturers' orders and personal income.
"The weakness in the economy shows no signs of relenting," Maxwell Clarke, chief U.S. economist at IDEAglobal, told Bloomberg News. "We lost the lifeline when credit dried up. We'll still be in a recession until the second quarter of 2009."
Citi gets a confidence boost -- but plunges anyway
A day after Citigroup (C, news, msgs) shares plummeted 23% -- its biggest one-day percentage decline ever -- the bank got an injection of confidence from one of its biggest stakeholders.
Saudi Arabian billionaire Prince Alwaleed bin Talal took advantage of the decline in the stock price and bought shares. The prince said he will increase his stake in Citigroup to 5% from his current stake of just less than 4%.
Stock Chart (Year)
Citigroup
In a statement, Prince Alwaleed expressed "his full and complete support of Citi management, led by Vikram Pandit, and believes they are taking all the necessary steps to position the company to withstand the challenges facing the banking industry and the global economy."
But the move did little to help Citigroup stock: It fell 16.7% to $5.33 this afternoon. The stock is down 77% since the beginning of the year.
On Wednesday, Citigroup said it was buying the remaining $17.4 billion in assets in its structured investment vehicles -- investment products that dealt heavily in risky debt. Earlier this week, the bank said it will cut 52,000 to 53,000 jobs.
Citi has raised $50 billion in private capital, the bank's statement said, in addition to the $25 billion that the U.S. government has provided under the Troubled Asset Relief Program.
GMAC wants to be a bank
GMAC, the financing arm of General Motors, is the latest company to apply to the Federal Reserve for bank holding status.
The company wants the new status so that it can access the government's $700 billion in rescue funds.
"As a bank holding company, GMAC would obtain increased flexibility and stability to fulfill its core mission of providing automotive and mortgage financing to consumers and businesses," GMAC said in a statement.
Goldman Sachs (GS, news, msgs) and Morgan Stanley (MS, news, msgs) are two other companies that made the switch in recent weeks to access the bailout money.
