John McCain on the Economy:
• He supports lowering taxes to help small businesses.
• He would cut the corporate tax rate from 35% to 25%,
• McCain supports giving tax breaks to businesses for investing in equipment and technology.
• He wants to establish a permanent tax credit for research and development.
Barack Obama on the Economy:
• He supports tax incentives for companies that keep jobs in the US.
• He believes that the NAFTA agreement should be renegotiated to protect the American economy.
• Obama suggests a $75-billion plan for the economy would offer a $500 tax rebate to families and a $250 Social Security supplement to seniors.
• He also would put more money into unemployment insurance.
• He would give federal money States hardest hit by the housing crisis.
• He would stop mortgage fraud and predatory lending with legislation that he proposed two years ago.
Tuesday, February 12, 2008
Monday, February 11, 2008
Is The US Economy in a state of recession??
The official definition of recession is when GDP growth is negative for two quarters or more. However, you can feel like you are in a recession before it has officially started because it is usually preceded by several quarters of slowing but positive growth. It feels like a recession when GDP growth slows, businesses stop expanding, employment falls, unemployment rises, and housing prices decline.
A month ago, economists in this closely watched forecast put the chance the world's richest economy would fall into recession at 40 per cent, but government data showing a contraction in hiring, slowed consumer spending and other reports pointing to sagging business activity have indicated a much more deteriorated outlook.
Among those economists, slightly more than 20 per cent are now expecting to see the economy contract in at least one or two quarters.
"The economic malaise that originated in the housing sector during 2006 (and) spread to the financial market in 2007, now appears to be infecting Main Street," the newsletter wrote.
And even as the economy slows, inflation is expected to creep higher.
The majority of those surveyed between February 5 and 6, however, continue to say a recession will be avoided. But growth is going to be weak.
Economists are now projecting the economy will grow by just 1.7 per cent in all of 2008, down from the 2.2 per cent forecast a month ago.
To help avert a recession, Blue Chip economists are expecting the Federal Reserve will continue cutting interest rates. They expect the central bank will reduce its target federal funds rate by at least half a percentage point more this year.
Last month, the Fed cut benchmark interest rates by a sharp 1.25 percentage points in a bold move to support growth as weakness, which was largely contained in the housing market last year, began to spread.
The series of recent cuts took overnight rates, which stood at 5.25 per cent in early September, down to 3 per cent.
There is a possibility that the US economy can go into a recession, theres a possibility it may not.
http://www.stuff.co.nz/4396802a6026.html
A month ago, economists in this closely watched forecast put the chance the world's richest economy would fall into recession at 40 per cent, but government data showing a contraction in hiring, slowed consumer spending and other reports pointing to sagging business activity have indicated a much more deteriorated outlook.
Among those economists, slightly more than 20 per cent are now expecting to see the economy contract in at least one or two quarters.
"The economic malaise that originated in the housing sector during 2006 (and) spread to the financial market in 2007, now appears to be infecting Main Street," the newsletter wrote.
And even as the economy slows, inflation is expected to creep higher.
The majority of those surveyed between February 5 and 6, however, continue to say a recession will be avoided. But growth is going to be weak.
Economists are now projecting the economy will grow by just 1.7 per cent in all of 2008, down from the 2.2 per cent forecast a month ago.
To help avert a recession, Blue Chip economists are expecting the Federal Reserve will continue cutting interest rates. They expect the central bank will reduce its target federal funds rate by at least half a percentage point more this year.
Last month, the Fed cut benchmark interest rates by a sharp 1.25 percentage points in a bold move to support growth as weakness, which was largely contained in the housing market last year, began to spread.
The series of recent cuts took overnight rates, which stood at 5.25 per cent in early September, down to 3 per cent.
There is a possibility that the US economy can go into a recession, theres a possibility it may not.
http://www.stuff.co.nz/4396802a6026.html
Friday, February 8, 2008
Yangs Position on Microsoft deal
Mr. Yang, a cerebral, highly analytic executive who, by all accounts, cares deeply about the company he helped build and its workers, appears to have run out of time to answer those questions. A $44.6 billion bid from Microsoft is once again forcing Mr. Yang and his board to consider the viability of Yahoo as an independent company.
This time, Mr. Yang, 39, faces enormous pressure as he decides whether to try to rescue the company from the clutches of Microsoft, or accept the bid and watch Yahoo become part of Microsoft’s arsenal in its no-holds-barred brawl with Google.
Some analysts and several current and former Yahoo executives are, meanwhile, wondering whether things would be different had Mr. Yang been quicker at making some of the tough choices that Yahoo faced.
“He came on board, announced a 100-day strategic review and promised there would be no sacred cows,” said Mark Mahaney, an analyst with Citigroup. “One hundred days went by, and no cows were slaughtered.”
It took until last week, more than six months into Mr. Yang’s tenure, for him to announce that Yahoo would cut 1,000 employees. At the same time, however, Mr. Yang warned investors that he had decided to make larger-than-expected investments in the business. The announcement sent the company’s shares down to their lowest level in more than three years, precipitating Microsoft’s bid.
“Why couldn’t those things be hashed out in the first 100 days?” Mr. Mahaney asked.
Yahoo declined to make Mr. Yang available for an interview. But other Yahoo executives strongly defended his short tenure, saying Mr. Yang had quickly set priorities and laid out a precise strategy for making Yahoo more competitive.
“We have moved quickly and aggressively to implement our strategy,” said Hilary Schneider, an executive vice president in charge of Yahoo’s network of advertisers and publishers.
By most measures, Mr. Yang is one of the most successful entrepreneurs in Silicon Valley history. He helped build Yahoo from an early directory of Web sites into a sprawling Internet giant that offers services from online dating to e-mail that are used by nearly 500 million people around the globe. His wealth is estimated to top $2 billion.
Early on, as Yahoo’s business grew, Mr. Yang and Mr. Filo recognized that they did not have the experience to run the company. They called themselves Chief Yahoos and hired others to fill the chief executive post: Tim Koogle and then Terry S. Semel. Mr. Filo worked as an architect of Yahoo’s computer systems. Mr. Yang played the role of strategic adviser and represented Yahoo in front of investors and business partners.
http://www.nytimes.com/2008/02/08/technology/08yahoo.html?em&ex=1202619600&en=ef973a5cd1c337ba&ei=5087%0A
I believe that Jerry Yang will not accept Microsofts offer.
This time, Mr. Yang, 39, faces enormous pressure as he decides whether to try to rescue the company from the clutches of Microsoft, or accept the bid and watch Yahoo become part of Microsoft’s arsenal in its no-holds-barred brawl with Google.
Some analysts and several current and former Yahoo executives are, meanwhile, wondering whether things would be different had Mr. Yang been quicker at making some of the tough choices that Yahoo faced.
“He came on board, announced a 100-day strategic review and promised there would be no sacred cows,” said Mark Mahaney, an analyst with Citigroup. “One hundred days went by, and no cows were slaughtered.”
It took until last week, more than six months into Mr. Yang’s tenure, for him to announce that Yahoo would cut 1,000 employees. At the same time, however, Mr. Yang warned investors that he had decided to make larger-than-expected investments in the business. The announcement sent the company’s shares down to their lowest level in more than three years, precipitating Microsoft’s bid.
“Why couldn’t those things be hashed out in the first 100 days?” Mr. Mahaney asked.
Yahoo declined to make Mr. Yang available for an interview. But other Yahoo executives strongly defended his short tenure, saying Mr. Yang had quickly set priorities and laid out a precise strategy for making Yahoo more competitive.
“We have moved quickly and aggressively to implement our strategy,” said Hilary Schneider, an executive vice president in charge of Yahoo’s network of advertisers and publishers.
By most measures, Mr. Yang is one of the most successful entrepreneurs in Silicon Valley history. He helped build Yahoo from an early directory of Web sites into a sprawling Internet giant that offers services from online dating to e-mail that are used by nearly 500 million people around the globe. His wealth is estimated to top $2 billion.
Early on, as Yahoo’s business grew, Mr. Yang and Mr. Filo recognized that they did not have the experience to run the company. They called themselves Chief Yahoos and hired others to fill the chief executive post: Tim Koogle and then Terry S. Semel. Mr. Filo worked as an architect of Yahoo’s computer systems. Mr. Yang played the role of strategic adviser and represented Yahoo in front of investors and business partners.
http://www.nytimes.com/2008/02/08/technology/08yahoo.html?em&ex=1202619600&en=ef973a5cd1c337ba&ei=5087%0A
I believe that Jerry Yang will not accept Microsofts offer.
Friday, February 1, 2008
Microsoft makes offer to buy Yahoo!
The deal, which, at $31 a share represents a 62 percent premium on Yahoo shares, is an unsolicited offer, coming a year after Yahoo rejected a similar combination.It would be one of the largest technology acquisitions ever, and certainly the largest for Microsoft, dwarfing the company's $6 billion deal for aQuantive last year.
Under terms of the offer, Yahoo shareholders would receive cash or a fixed number of shares of Microsoft common stock, with Yahoo shareholders getting one-half cash and one-half Microsoft common stock. For its part, Yahoo said its board would "carefully and promptly" evaluate the offer.As for Google, the company isn't nervous about the potential combination. In an interview on FOX Business Network's Money for Breakfast, Tim Armstrong, president of North American advertising and sales at Google, said the company is "more nervous about making sure we stay focused ourselves than what the competition is." Jerry Yang might want a greater amount of money for stocks.
http://www.foxbusiness.com/markets/industries/technology/article/microsoft-offers-buy-yahoo-31-share_461142_12.html
Under terms of the offer, Yahoo shareholders would receive cash or a fixed number of shares of Microsoft common stock, with Yahoo shareholders getting one-half cash and one-half Microsoft common stock. For its part, Yahoo said its board would "carefully and promptly" evaluate the offer.As for Google, the company isn't nervous about the potential combination. In an interview on FOX Business Network's Money for Breakfast, Tim Armstrong, president of North American advertising and sales at Google, said the company is "more nervous about making sure we stay focused ourselves than what the competition is." Jerry Yang might want a greater amount of money for stocks.
http://www.foxbusiness.com/markets/industries/technology/article/microsoft-offers-buy-yahoo-31-share_461142_12.html
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