Bank of America Corp. (BAC) will likely boost its stake in state-owned banking giant China Construction Bank Corp., paying about 36 cents a share (2.46 yuan), or 1.2 times the Beijing-based lender’s book value, China’s Caijing magazine reported last Friday, citing unidentified sources.
By all reasonable measures, we are already in a recession, says Shah Gilani. Deflation has become today’s number one threat. But massive government rescues mean another bout of inflation looms on the horizon. Shah says investors should look to short vulnerable stocks in 2009. But in 12-18 months, they should be prepared for a “generational opportunity” to make a fortune.
Retailers 3Q Earnings Dismal; Cisco Sees Small Biz Sales Growth; Blackstone Posts $502 million 3Q Loss; IEA Sees $100 Oil Average; Mattel Toying with Job Cuts; Direct TV Earnings Up; Fidelity Cuts 1,300 jobs; Jobless Claims Fall
Huge trend reversal: Dollar busts, commodities boom… why, and will it last? Rate cuts round the world… U.S. and China slash, Japan considers. U.S. three months away from “official” recession. Two new bailouts: Who’s lining up for help, plus Uncle Sam’s October tab. Denning and Nelson on beating inflation with the right long-haul stock.
The markets haven’t exactly soared on the passing of the bailout bill. But Andrew Gordon says some firms are going to make huge profits from the bill.
Andrew says, “Real estate companies, hedge funds, and private-equity firms have raised tens of billions this year alone for the specific purpose of buying distressed debt. The bailout is about to kick off the biggest fire sale of real estate in US history.“
However, these firms may also inherit heaps of bad debt if they don’t do their research properly. There will be plenty of big losers for every big winner from this bailout.
Yesterday, U.S. private-equity firm Lone Star Funds announced it would buy a majority stake in Germany’s IKB Deutsche Industriebank AG for one-fifth of the original asking price. The deal is a bargain for Lone Star, says Jennifer Yousfi in Money Morning…
Wholesale Prices Soar; U.S. Bancorp Sees Earnings Slide; Johnson & Johnson Enjoys 40% Jump in Profit; China Buys 1% of BP for $1.7 Billion; Brazil’s Retail Sales Hit Four-Year Record; Crocs Stock Drops; Intel Profit Down; Big Loss for WaMu.
Airbus Lands in Hot Water; Ford Fishtails in March; Microsoft Won’t Raise Yahoo Bid; SCA Sues Merrill Lynch; Big Oil Brought Before Congress; $10.9 Billion Blackstone Real Estate Fund; Gold Prices Sink; Indonesia’s Inflation Soars
How do you know when you’re “through the looking glass?” One terrific clue is when the price of gold - which normally moves up in response to monetary easing - instead plummets in reaction to one of the largest interest-rate reductions in U.S. Federal Reserve history.