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Strategies & Market Trends : Mish's Global Economic Trend Analysis -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: orkrious who wrote (17841)	12/6/2004 10:11:34 PM
From: RealMuLan	Respond to of 116555

Yeah, a good article, elmat posted this article on BBR thread<g>. Message 20808305

To: orkrious who wrote (17841)	12/6/2004 11:24:35 PM
From: Box-By-The-Riviera™	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 116555

in 1984, 5 bucks was worth 17+ Deutsch Marks sigh a pauper and a king were the same

To: orkrious who wrote (17841)	12/7/2004 12:05:14 AM
From: mishedlo	Respond to of 116555

Concord Camera to cut 1,700 positions (LENSE) By Jennifer Inez Ward SAN FRANCISCO (CBS.MW) -- Concord Camera (LENSE) said late Monday it will cut about 1,700 positions by the end of third quarter 2005 as part of a restructuring plan to save money. Concord said it also will also increase its usage of contract manufactures for the design and manufacturing of its digital cameras. Concord said it expects to record about $8.8 million in restructuring and additional expenses. ================================================== never heard of them but another 1,700 jobs go poof Mish

To: orkrious who wrote (17841)	12/7/2004 12:18:49 AM
From: mishedlo	Respond to of 116555

Jury rules Sept 11 was two events for WTC towers - WSJ By August Cole SAN FRANCISCO (CBS.MW) -- The Sept. 11 attacks on the World Trade Center were two events for the property's insurers, a jury ruled Monday, according to the Wall Street Journal. The U.S. District Court ruling in Manhattan could mean that the property's leaseholder could collect billions from insurers, the report said.

To: orkrious who wrote (17841)	12/7/2004 12:21:53 AM
From: mishedlo	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 116555

More On Dollar’s Downfall opec shifting away from $ reserves to euro reserves northerntrust.com

To: orkrious who wrote (17841)	12/7/2004 12:22:33 AM
From: mishedlo	Read Replies (2) \| Respond to of 116555

Supreme Court to hear direct wine sales case Monday, December 6, 2004 10:44:24 PM afxpress.com CHICAGO (AFX) -- Interstate direct-to-consumer wine sales, already de facto in dozens of states, could eventually end up de jure in several more, depending on the outcome of a case being argued Tuesday before the U.S. Supreme Court In Granholm v. Heald, which consolidates similar cases from Michigan and New York, the high court will consider whether states have the right to bar direct-to-consumer wine shipments from other jurisdictions, while permitting them for in-state wineries. In addition to being a showdown between big wholesalers that enjoy a near-stranglehold on the distribution of alcohol and small vineyards that can't get retail shelf space through their channels, the case seems to pit two established constitutional principles against each other. On one hand is the right of Congress, and Congress alone, to regulate interstate commerce. On the other is the cherished post-Prohibition rule written into the 21st Amendment, which says that individual states get to decide when and what their residents get to drink and how much they'll pay for that privilege. A wide range of amicus briefs have been filed in support of both arguments. More than 30 state attorneys general have sided with Michigan and New York and five, including the one from California -- which produces about 90 percent of all American wine -- have taken the shippers' side Other outside concerns have joined the fray, with FedEx and eBay , Nobel Prize-winning economists and free traders among those backing the shippers. The Wine & Spirits Wholesalers of America and the National Beer Wholesalers, trade groups representing alcohol distributors, are backing the states -- along with some strange bedfellows in the form of temperance organizations. (One of them -- the Illinois Alcoholism Association -- stated in its brief that "it is indisputable that liquor is a dangerous drug that imposes the highest social and economic costs on American society.") "This case is about whether consumers will be able to purchase the wines they want and whether smaller wineries will be able to sell it to them," said Steve Simpson, a senior attorney at the Institute for Justice, which is arguing on behalf of the shippers. "Licensed wholesalers really have a lock on the distribution system within each state." Karen Gravois Elliot, a spokeswoman for the Wine & Spirits Wholesalers of America, contends what is at stake is "the entire system of safeguards in place with regards to the sale and distribution of alcohol. If you start chipping away and making exceptions for a few, you put at risk all regulations that have important public policy goals," such as tax collection and age restrictions Conspicuously absent from the battlefield are the huge multinational beverage conglomerates -- like Allied Domecq , Brown-Forman , Constellation Brands and Diageo . While those companies could potentially stand to reap modest benefits from being able to directly ship from small vineyards they own, they already have the advantage over mom-and-pop operators in having access to retailers. So they have generally declined to take sides, in part for fear of crossing a very powerful constituency Not one would speak on the record about this case, except to reiterate that it's taking no public position. "[The big companies] are so tied into the major distributors they can't afford to alienate them," said Tom Pirko, president of consultancy BevMark. "They gain tremendous advantage by being part of this controlled system. But they are not going to jump in for something against the consumer." He added: "It is the consumer who is getting screwed." There are roughly 3,000 wineries in the United States, but the top 50 account for about 87 percent of the wine produced here, according to Jeremy Benson, executive director of Free the Grapes, which represents the small wineries and thousands of consumers. For some small or midsize wineries, "half or more of their revenues come from direct-to-consumer shipments," he said making the practice a matter of survival. Far from threatening the pocketbooks of wholesalers -- the top 10 of which control 50 percent of the market -- Benson asserted that the littler guys just want seats at the table "We are trying to augment the system with a market for legal, regulated direct shipments that already exists in 26 states," he said

To: orkrious who wrote (17841)	12/7/2004 12:28:34 AM
From: mishedlo	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 116555

UK Nov high street spending falls for 1st time since Dec 2003 [what is high street? mish] Tuesday, December 7, 2004 12:16:25 AM afxpress.com LONDON (AFX) - High street spending in the UK slumped for the first time in nearly a year in November signalling a very slow start to the Christmas shopping season, going by a key survey of the sector In its monthly retail sales monitor, the British Retail Consortium said like-for-like sales in November fell by 0.2 pct from the same month last year. The last time a drop was recorded was in December last year, when a similar 0.2 pct fall was registered Total sales, which includes expansion in floor space, rose 2.4 pct in November compared with a year ago - once again the smallest rise since December last year when growth was 2.3 pct In October sales rose 0.5 pct for like-on-like sales and 3.0 pct for total sales The three-month trend rate of growth fell from 1.1 pct in October to 0.8 pct for like-for-like sales, and from 3.7 pct to 3.4 pct for total sales "Christmas had started slowly, with consumers still cautious about big-ticket purchases, or planning to take advantage of this year's longer pre-Christmas week," BRC said. Stores holding special discount days enjoyed excellent growth during those weeks, especially for clothing, footwear and some home ranges, but others were hit by the strong competition Meanwhile, food sales were mixed, with some good take-up of promotional offers while others saw sales below expectations. It was another difficult month for electrical and electronic goods. Big-ticket items struggled in the face of housing market and credit worries BRC Director general, Kevin Hawkins said the latest figures provide further proof that interest rate rises and fears over the future of the housing market, pensions and the economy have created a subdued, cautious mood amongst consumers However, while November was a tough month, retailers have become used to the bulk of Christmas spending happening much later in December, he added "Talk of panic sales is premature and retailers will now wait to see if the mood improves and they can catch up lost ground during December," he added

To: orkrious who wrote (17841)	12/7/2004 12:39:07 AM
From: mishedlo	Respond to of 116555

The CBA NZ Commodity Price Index declined across all denominations monitored last week. Again the higher NZD/USD was of influence. The latest commodity to feel the full brunt of the higher NZ dollar is wool. Chinese buyers have been put off by the high currency, a loss of demand becoming more apparent now that the seasonal increase in supply is occurring. Higher seasonal supply also led to the usual seasonal decline in lamb prices last week (although offshore prices remain good). By far the largest move of the week, though, was the 11% oil price decline (in USD). This fall has long been expected but US prices still remain well above the average levels of 2003 and first half 2004. The NZD/USD continued on its upward path last week and again this week, the major driving force being general USD weakness. To repeat the outlook provided in previous weeks: the US dollar will probably weaken (NZD appreciate) until such time that the Bank of Japan, and possibly other central banks, intervene by buying US dollars; this could happen any day or any week; in the meantime the NZ dollar could potentially trade as high as 75 cents www1.asbbank.co.nz