Twitter Posts on 2008-11-05
- Moody’s: US auto lenders face weakening market. You sure can’t sneak one past those guys at Moody’s. #
- Sept. new orders for manuf goods -2.5% from Aug. Shipments -2.8%, unfilled orders +0.4%. This pattern shows lack of avail working capital. #
- Taxi strike in China’s Chongqing continues Tuesday. There was a time when this would not have been politically possible. #
- Royal Bank of Scotland may take a full-year loss on $1B plus write-downs of Lehman & Icelandic bank assets. What were they thinking? #
- Dems will end up with 56-58 Senate seats, biggest margin since Jimmy Carter. Now there is an inauspicious sign. #
- Wednesday I will be on the 5PM Fox Business show in the bar at the Waldorf with Cody, Rebecca and Eric. Wine will be served. #
- Obama to inherit feeble economy awash in red ink. Bunk. When you take over in a disaster, like Reagan in 1981, you HAVE TO look like a hero. #
- My friend Ryan Ellis points out 5.1 million FaceBookers voted. Who gave the keys to the children? http://twitter.com/taxplaya #
- Huge gains in the Asian markets (it’s already tomorrow there). Japan +4.9%, Hong Kong +5.7%, Singapore +4.4% China +4%. #
- Some stocks I have been building positions in at the sale of the century: FCX, STO, PFE, CAT, CXCO, APPL, EWS. #
- Gannett CEO takes $200K paycut as layoffs readied. Like to see a CEO take a bullet with troops. Marine officer does not eat til men are fed. #
- Newark to get its own Zagat restaurant guide. It was easy to prepare–no stars. #
- Fannie Mae spends more than $6,000 on golf outing. Can’t keep other people’s noses out of your business while your hand is in their pocket. #
- Romania: 7,000 railway workers to strike. Bad timing guys. #
- Pension funds selling private equity portfolios to squeeze back into asset allocation targets busted by falling stock prices. Big mistake! #
- My friend Art Laffer says when you bail some one out of trouble you bail in some one else. Need to keep that in mind. #
- NM voters approve $223 million in state bonds. That just means the voters want to SELL them. Problem today is nobody wants to BUY them. #
- Cerberus chief: Country can’t let automakers fail. Hmm. Their investment in Chrysler wouldn’t have anything to do with his view, would it? #
- Sen. Snowe seeks aid for Maine lobster industry. Guess we forgot them in the earlier handouts. Next? #
- Hawaiian Telcom postpones $26M interest payment. The credit crunch is not over yet and in some ways will worsen over the next 2 months. #
- Just learned about a 15 day bus loan, libor + 6%, with 12 points in fees, all collateralized by CASH, that was turned down by bank. #
Fred Goodwin should lose his pension. He hasn’t done well for his company and should suffer the consequences. Should the senior director for any company not be held responsible? Letting him get away with such a big pension is ludicrous. Sorry I’m talking about the RBS and their record losses last year.
Dave
David,
Thanks so much for your comment. I share your anger at the shoddy leadership we have had in many companies and in the government. And I do not have much confidence in the commitment of public company boards to protecting the shareholder from grasping managers. I do think it is important to observe contracts, including employment contracts, which often pre-set certain parameters should the board fire the CEO. If I were on this board (which thank God I am not) I would insist on a careful reading of employment agreements, and strictly carry them out. To the extent I had discretion over the terms, however, I would send the CEO walking out the door with just his hat in his hand.
John