Hello all, nice to hear about somewhere warm Mohan,
On the wall next to my monitor I keep casual tabs on the announced lay-offs since November.
General Motors 40,000 over 3 years, closing 7 plants
Eastman Kodak 10,000 over 9 months
Levi 6,400
Silicon Graph 700
Kimberly Clark 5,000 closing one plant
Woolworths 9,200 closing remaining stores
Citycorp 9,000
Catapillar ?
Inter Paper 9,200 closing two plants
Fruit of loom 4,800 closing two plants
stanley works 4,500
Apple Comp 4,100
Raytheon 10,000
When I look at the list it's hard to imagine we have a shortage of skilled workers. At the very least there is an economic shift occurring of which we don't have a good understanding. Several months ago Business Week had an article on similar inconsistencies; I'll try the link, but it may have expired:
businessweek.com
In part it says "Even as demand remains strong, many companies are living through the experience of a profitless prosperity."
People don't understand the scope of this change, yet we all want to hope for the best, and I think that's being reflected in the rally. After all, if there is revenue growth, there must be profit growth!
If the market is really a discounting mechanism, either it failing this time, or the economy is going to pull through without a significant slowdown.
best, art |
