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Politics : Dutch Central Bank Sale Announcement Imminent? -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: sea_urchin who wrote (19382)	10/20/2003 1:22:15 PM
From: Ahda	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 81904

ENRON Debt is profitable the paper shuffle produces jobs Enron's Legal Fees Total $515 Million So Far Enron has spent more than half a billion dollars on bankruptcy lawyers and accountants so far, and the bills are still pouring in, the Houston Chronicle reported. The $515 million billed by more than 50 law firms, accountants and independent professionals is more than double the cost of any known bankruptcy case, the newspaper reported. Lawyers and company officials say they must pay that much out of Enron's remaining cash to sort out the accounting and legal issues underlying the company's bankruptcy, easily the most complex ever, the Chronicle reported. Bankruptcy experts say location is another reason. When Enron filed for bankruptcy nearly two years ago, its rush to court was not led by the parent company, Enron Corp., nor Enron North America, a substantial unit that housed its much-ballyhooed commodity-trading business. Instead, the first filing was under the name of the obscure Enron Metals & Commodity Corp., a metal-trading business with 55 employees and one-half of 1 percent of Enron's assets, because it was headquartered in the jurisdiction of New York's Southern District Bankruptcy Court. Part of the attraction of the New York district, some lawyers say, is its demonstrated willingness to let a bankrupt company hire vast armies of lawyers. In the mean time the largest increase in compensation is in government. Civilian Workers, Compensation 3-Month % Change (SA) 0.9% in 2nd Qtr of 2003 12-Month % Change (NSA) 3.7% in 2nd Qtr of 2003 Private Industry, Compensation 3-Month % Change (SA) 0.8% in 2nd Qtr of 2003 12-Month % Change (NSA) 3.5% in 2nd Qtr of 2003 State and Local Government, Compensation 3-Month % Change (SA) 1.0% in 2nd Qtr of 2003 12-Month % Change (NSA) 4.1% in 2nd Qtr of 2003 I will not mention PE ratios that are again getting very high. Why because there are very many dollars looking for a return and good companies are few and far between. Every body in production curses as they have to find ways to keep costs low and compete product wise. I will not mention the mortgage industry who with low rates combined with an increase in housing costs allows the renovation and beautification industry to keep and increase jobs. I am sure we can keep paper spinning the problem seems to be we can't produce products that add up to the cost of the spin.