There have been various developments over the past several weeks which investors may consider relevant in allocating their resources or evaluating alternatives that are available to them. Some of the more significant developments include, but are not limited to, the following:
- On Monday, the Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 82 points.
- On Tuesday, the Dow Jones Industrial Average advanced 62 points.
- On Wednesday, the Dow Jones Industrial Average dropped 245 points.
- On Thursday, the Dow Jones Industrial Average slipped 27 points.
- On Friday, the Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 143 points and closed the week at 8599.
- The Fed is reporting that the economy is likely to get worse with unemployment rising into 2010 and GDP falling in 2009.
- Orders to factories fell for the fourth consecutive month.
- According to a recent survey, nearly two-thirds of all millionaires believe that their financial advisers have failed them.
- In 2008, automobile manufacturers sold almost 3 million fewer cars than in 2007.
- Toyota is suspending production in all of its Japanese plants for 11 days as demand for automobiles slumps.
- Based on payroll data, it appears that U.S. companies eliminated an estimated 693,000 jobs in December.
- More than 2.8 million people lost their jobs in 2008 and the unemployment rate now stands at 7.2%. This is the biggest loss of jobs since 1945.
- ING Bank analyst Rob Carnell projects that an additional 1,000,000 jobs will be lost “sooner than you might think.”
- Alcoa is slashing 13,500 jobs ? 13% of its workforce.
- Boeing reported that it is eliminating 4,500 jobs.
- CIGNA, a managed care provider, announced that it was cutting 1,100 jobs ? about 4% of its workforce.
- Walgreen is cutting 1,000 jobs.
- Schlumberger, Ltd will eliminate approximately 1,000 jobs in North America.
- Macy’s plans to close eleven stores in nine states ? 960 jobs expected to be lost.
- LyondellBasell, a large European petrochemical company, placed its U.S. operations in bankruptcy.
- Goody’s Family Clothing, a discount retail chain, is liquidating its stores. The firm has 9,800 employees that are likely to be impacted by this action.
- Market experts are expecting U.S. companies to experience a “horrible earnings season.”
- Walmart, the nation’s leading retailer, lowered its fourth quarter earnings estimates.
- After writing down the value of assets by $25 billion, Time Warner announced that it will report a loss for 2008.
- Intel announced that its fourth quarter results would be worse than expected and said that its quarterly revenue was down 23% from a year earlier.
- Hedge funds lost a record 18.3% during 2008 according to Hedge Fund Research.
- Consumer loan delinquencies have hit a record high.
- According to CNN Money, the cost of the federal bailout programs has now reached $7.2 trillion in loans and investments.
- The Treasury Department’s inspector general has asked the Department to provide information on its secretive process for deciding who receives bailout funds and how much they receive. The refusal of the Treasury Department to provide transparency to the process and the refusal of bailout recipients to disclose how bailout funds are being used has raised questions about whether the bailout involves cronyism at its highest levels.
Page Perry’s Market Monitor is published periodically to give investors an overview of certain recent developments impacting the economy and/or the investment markets.