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Monday, December 29, 2008
Posted by Roberto
12:00 PM 0 comments

29-12-2008 QUOTES

"There is no way that we should worry about what we should eat for dinner when we have not had breakfast yet. The good thing to do is to prepare and eat breakfast first."
Japanese Finance Minister Shoichi Nakagawa as he dismissed suggestions Japan will need to draw up another fiscal stimulus package and said extra spending plans must be implemented first

"Given the difficulty in the world economy and South Korea's high dependence on outside markets, we are at a critical moment which may see negative growth in the first and second quarters although the annual number may be positive."
South Korean President Lee Myung-bak

"Production is falling like Niagara Falls. What's going on now is beyond what Toyota and Sony had ever imagined."
Mitsuru Saito, chief economist at Tokai Tokyo Securities

Saturday, December 13, 2008
Posted by Roberto
3:33 PM 1 comments

SAVE THE PEOPLE AND LET THE FIRMS DIE
YOU CANNOT REPAIR AN ILLUSION

Excerpts from a discussion with Thierry Gaudin, Prospective 2100 President:

"Because of the growing influence of the medias, particularly TV, the modern economy, at least in the so called "developed" countries, but also elsewhere, has been built on mental manipulation of the public, and turned to bear a complete illusion, including growth, development and so forth. Thus, you cannot repair an illusion. The only thing you can do is to go back to reality: ecological footprint, depletion of resources, decline of biodiversity..."

"As far as the pre-crisis employment was devoted to respond and amplify the illusion, the unavoidable reaction of the ruling class, which is to try to "save" the firms, is definitely counterproductive. The correct response would be to save the people, implement reasonable great programs aimed at ecological equilibrium, and let the firms die. After all, organizations are only legal commodities. If they are not serving the common good why should they be maintained?"

Links:
Thierry Gaudin
World Futures Studies Federation

Friday, December 12, 2008
Posted by Roberto
5:18 PM 0 comments

U.S. VIDEOGAME SALES FOR THE MONTH OF NOVEMBER: $3 BILLION

Americans may be cutting back on holiday shopping, but they are still buying video games.

November 2008 U.S. Video Games Sales (Hardware + Software + accessories) totaled $2.91 billion, according to data from market researcher NPD Group.

Nintendo Wii sold 2 million units for the month (+108% compared to same month last year), allowing five games to be among the top ten titles.

The U.S. video game industry is set to top $22 billion in 2008.

TOP TEN BEST-SELLING VIDEO GAMES FOR THE MONTH OF NOVEMBER:
Gears of War 2 (Xbox 360 - Microsoft): 1.56M
Call of Duty: World at War (Xbox 360 - Activision): 1.41M
Wii Play (Wii - Nintendo): 796k
Wii Fit (Wii - Nintendo): 697k
Mario Kart (Wii - Nintendo): 637k
Call of Duty: World at War (PS3 - Activision): 597k
Guitar Hero: World Tour (Wii - Activision): 475k
Left 4 Dead (X360 - EA): 410k
Resistance 2 (PS3 - Sony): 385k
Wii Music (Wii - Nintendo): 297k

Links:
Video Game Sales Chart
NPD Market Research

Monday, December 08, 2008
Posted by Roberto
4:07 PM 0 comments

STILL HAVEN'T REACHED LOWEST VALUATION LEVELS

John Mauldin, author of the popular Thoughts from the Frontline e-letter, isn't buying the "stocks are cheap" mantra.

June 2008, John Mauldin's historical comment:
"We have seen the heads of virtually all financial institutions stand up over the last few months and claim the worst is behind us. Why would anyone listen to these people? They didn't see the disaster coming, and yet somehow they are qualified to tell us it is all alright! Perhaps I am just unduly skeptical, but this reeks of a conspiracy of optimism. The recession has barely started, let alone reached its nadir. The market moves of late have all the hallmarks of a classic sucker's rally. This isn't discounting the recovery, this is denial! Far from being behind us, the worst may well still be ahead!"

December 2008:
"This is going to be a longer recession we've had in a long time and earnings are going to be impacted a lot more than people are currently thinking. If earnings do disappoint, today's "cheap" P/E ratios will prove to be a sucker's bet."
Mauldin predicts valuations will eventually fall to record low levels, meaning low single-digits price-to-earnings ratios, before ultimately finding a floor.

December 2008 Volatility:
Regarding volatility, Diane Garnick, investment strategist at Invesco, notes that if the S&P is at 900 and the VIX at 50 (current levels are 899 and 54, respectively), the market is pricing in a two-thirds chance the index will trade between 770-1029 over the next 30 days creating one of the most difficult environments to make a commitment to stocks.