Fewer earnings anticipated by student but they're still optimistic

Individuals of the age group of college students expect to earn less over their lifetime than their parents. However, they expect a greater degree of personal satisfaction. An AP survey of individuals ages 18 to 24 revealed that younger individuals, especially those saddled with higher amounts of student debt, expect a lower quality of life than their parents.

Less money and more happy in the younger generation

MSNBC states that many in college feel like they won’t be making any money although they’ll be happy still. Goals for instance raising a family and buying a home are considered more difficult than before for 40 percent of survey respondents which were 18 to 24 years old according to a poll done by Viacom and the AP. When it comes to life, 25 percent believed they’d have it simple. They assumed it would be easier than their parents’ lives were. About 90 percent of the survey subjects believed they would eventually discover a career they find fulfilling.

Increase in student debt

The increased costs making a harder living is what people in the AP survey said would take place. Student debt has increased a lot in this age group. The average college graduate has about $24,000 in loan debt, according to the New York Times, which at an interest rate of 6.8 percent demands a payment of $276 per month, and student loans cannot be discharged in bankruptcy. According to the Department of Education, 65.6 percent of undergraduates from 2007 to 2008 got financial aid. Then, another 38.5 percent got student loans. According to the Department of Education, subsidized Stafford loans were taken out by 30 percent of undergraduates. Another 22 percent took out non-subsidized Stafford loans while at school.

Picking an investment

The bureau of Labor Statistics reports that the average earnings with a college degree are $53,000 a year. Hardly anyone gets it quickly though. A college degree is not a guarantee of quickly falling into a healthy income, however it increases the likelihood that a person will earn a solid middle class income during their lifetime. The 2009 statistics showed that there’s a 4 percent lower rate of joblessness among college graduates than high school graduates. That means the chances of being unemployed goes down also. Now it is costing more to get a degree. Education does not come cheap.

Information from

MSNBC

msnbc.msn.com/id/42643248/ns/business-your_retirement/

Department of Education

nces.ed.gov/fastfacts/display.asp?id=31

New York Times

economix.blogs.nytimes.com/2011/04/15/how-worrisome-is-student-debt/?partner=rss&emc=rss

Bureau of Labor Statistics

bls.gov/emp/ep_chart_001.htm

Largest bond fund drops all government debt and then some

Cutting spending to reduce the deficit is too much for partisan politics to manage, according to the largest bond fund in the world. The Pimco Total Return Fund has gone into negative territory on U.S. Treasuries. This is also known as taking a short position on the debt piling up in the U.S. government.

What Pimco will do for the Treasury

The Nation’s triple-A bond rating may be endangered and Pimco is betting on the debt problem driving up rates of interest. To get to a short position on Treasury bonds, Pimco sold borrowed securities on a bet it can buy them back later at a lower price. United States government debt has been cautioned by Pimco head, Bill Gross. Gross sold all of Pimco’s treasury holdings in February causing lots of concern. In March he made $7 billion bet against the securities.

There was a drop from zero to negative three in the $236 billion Return Fund held in the U.S. Treasury of Pimco. The fund’s money equivalents rose to 31 percent of the fund’s assets, a $73 billion bet the good times are about to end in the markets.

The possession of Pimco as short

Gross has no faith that Congress will be able to solve the deficit problem. The government is “out of Greeking the Greeks,” according to Pimco’s April newsletter. Greece’s massive government debt forced its leaders to ask for a bailout from the European Union to prevent a global chain reaction of financial failure. Greece’s financial issues were only a fifth of the debt that America has.

Will market play into Pimco’s hands

Gross is assuming a sort position on U.S. Treasuries and hoping the market falls in his favor. John Carney at CNBC warns investors to regard Gross’s machinations with caution. Wall Street has been unreliable for some time now, and something that seems right, might in fact be “dangerously wrong.”

Articles cited

Associated Press

finance.yahoo.com/news/PIMCO-goes-short-US-rb-3790514655.html?x=0

Fortune

finance.fortune.cnn.com/2011/04/10/pimcos-gross-betting-against-u-s-debt/

Christian Science Monitor

csmonitor.com/Business/Latest-News-Wires/2011/0412/Bond-fund-and-many-others-bearish-on-US-debt

Reuters

reuters.com/article/2011/04/11/us-pimco-bonds-short-idUSTRE73A2IR20110411

Startup America Partnership promises millions more in help

Being an entrepreneur is tough, but a three-month-old private entity, supported by government partnerships, is aiming to make it just a little bit easier. Over a dozen new businesses have pledged $400 million to help entrepreneurs grow their businesses. Source of article – Startup America Partnership helps small businesses grow by MoneyBlogNewz.

About the Startup America Partnership

The privately funded Startup America has a partnership with the U.S. federal government. They work together. The Startup America Partnership is technically a White House initiative however is privately funded and managed. Startup America aims to provide discounts and special programs to entrepreneurs to help them start and grow a business. The partnership provides preferred pricing and discounts to members of Startup America as well as workshops, classes and business information that could otherwise cost thousands of dollars. Over 60 percent of U.S. new jobs come from small businesses which also account for 44 percent of U.S. payroll. The partnership is meant to help encourage more of these small businesses to grow and hire.

An extra $400 million spent

Startup America made an announcement on April 20. Big-name businesses donated over $400 million to the organization. There was $125 million committed by American Express for Startup America corporations to get preferred pricing. About $100 million in Google Ad credits have been donated by Google. In May, “Startup Days” could be hosted by Facebook. HP is offering $100 million in discounts on products for startup businesses. There were several businesses involved in discounts as well. These involved Palindrome Advisors, The National Center for Women & Information Technology, LinkedIn, First Data, Ernst and Young and Cisco. Several partnerships with companies already existed. Included in this list are The Pearson Foundation, American Association of Community Colleges, Causecast, Intel, FirstData, Google, Intuit, Microsoft, Atisa, Cisco, Mass Challenge, IBM and Artists & Instigators.

Startup America takes anybody

The Startup America Partnership can help you in case you are a small company owner or have a business idea. Either before or after you’ve gotten unsecured loans to start your business, it’s as simple as signing up. Go to Startupamericaparternship.org, register, and start looking at deals. All the programs can be listed there, even though there are different needs for the different Startup America Partnership programs. You need to be able to conserve hundreds or thousands of dollars with the Startup America Partnership program dependent upon the business.

Information from

Startup America Partnership Website

startupamericapartnership.org/

SBA.gov

sba.gov/advocacy/7495/8420

Cash buyers hold a benefit in depressed housing market

Home values have fallen so far that more individuals are buying properties with cash. Most home buyers need a home loan. But increasingly that is going up against buyers that use cash as an advantage. However cash versus mortgage doesn’t necessarily have to be a done deal if the borrower does their homework.

Cold, hard cash is king

The National Association of Realtors reported an all time high in the number of deals in February in home sales done with cash. Cash buyers have become formidable opponents for many home customers financing their deal with a mortgage. The real estate market has more cash customers because many would rather have a home as an investment than stock. The investment in rentals has also been attractive to lots of people.

Last year, 59 percent of home customers purchasing as an investment paid cash. Since a seller knows that there probably won’t be difficulties with closing on the home, most are more willing to accept cash. When choosing between a buyer that needs financing and a lower cash offer, most are willing to take the cash. Cash usually wins when the bank is the seller. Banks choose the safest option when attempting to get homes off the books.

The best way to beat cash

In 2010, 25 percent of home sales were foreclosures. According to Fannie Mae, short sales increased also. This number increase 128 percent last year. Any seller with equity does not want a financed buyer. Cash customers are preferable. Equity holders are not under pressure to take whatever they can get and will wait for the best offer. Financing buyers can also compete with cash by getting pre-approved for a mortgage. Being prepared with a high down payment also evens the odds. When getting the home, do what the seller wants. This could help a lot. Make the deal clear by having a detailed contract ready while being respectful. When the time comes, act easily. Do not give up hope as a financing buyer. Cash deals aren’t always perfect either.

Financing or cash

Additionally to getting a better deal, paying cash to buy a home has several advantages. Sometimes the available returns on investments are lower than personal property rates. The interest money saved ends up being good for the buyer. The buyer only loses their own money if the value of the home goes down. A 10 percent drop can really hurt a mortgage with 20 percent down. Fifty percent of the down payment ends up lost.

There are advantages mortgages have though. Sometimes you purchase a home with cash. When this takes place, no other investments could be made with that money. There is also leverage here. If the value of the home goes up, the mortgage holder gains a higher percentage than the cash buyer. There are tax deductions for home loan interest too. The loan cost is lowered this way.

Citations

MarketWatch

marketwatch.com/story/how-to-beat-a-cash-bidder-in-the-housing-market-2011-04-13?pagenumber=2

WiseBread

wisebread.com/the-pros-and-cons-of-paying-cash-for-a-house

Short Sale Daily News

shortsaledailynews.com/short-sales-up-128-percent-in-2010/

Federal budget passes; fewer troops need military pay day loans

Congress has finally approved the federal budget for 2011. It took a long time, and there was quite the standoff. Many were afraid that a government shutdown would have sent military service members, among other federal workers, running for payday advance as they would not be paid during a shutdown. That said, a shutdown was thankfully avoided. The next trifle in government waits.

Problem shutdown would have brought on for deployed

For Fiscal Year 2011, Congress upheld a bill. There was a lot of stress about a government shutdown during all of this. Congress would have been paid still while several other government employees would have lost payment if there was a shutdown, which did not take place. Some would have been required to work still too. For instance, military members are always required to be on duty. They wouldn’t get paid during a shutdown though. Federal regulations prohibit service personnel from getting payday advance or comparable subprime credit products, and most service personnel, according to MSNBC, make close to the average wage in The United States, it would have been a devastating blow to military families.

Military personnel salaries

There are three in four individuals getting paid $31,000 or less a year in the armed services. The median earnings are at $36,587 in the United States according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics. The mean is at $44,901, making it a little higher. Military personal are making less than the average person no matter which scale you take. Service families tend to have debt issues, the Washington Post reported a 2008 Department of Defense survey saying. There are also problems with bankruptcy as shown in a 2004 study the Government Accountability Office did. It showed that bankruptcy was filed by 1.2 percent of military members that are on active duty. Federal court statistics indicates that more than 1.5 million individuals filed for bankruptcy last year, which is 0.5 percent of the United States population.

Service the country is not worth all that much apparently

The people who elect to serve this country do not get rewarded much for their efforts. If service members get too much debt, they can lose their security clearance making it harder for them. With a shutdown happening, there would have been other possibilities. Luckily, the people do not have to worry over it. The Naval Federal Member Bank offered low interest unsecured loans to members in case of a shutdown, like other credit unions and banks for federal employees have done in previous shutdowns.

Information from

MSNBC

msnbc.msn.com/id/42559366/ns/business-your_retirement/?gt1=43001

Washington Post

washingtonpost.com/blogs/blogpost/post/military-pay-faces-uncertain-future-troubling-for-financially-strapped-families/2011/04/08/AFHV311C_blog.html

Bureau of Labor Statistics

bls.gov/ncs/ocs/sp/nctb1346.pdf

U.S. Courts

uscourts.gov/uscourts/Statistics/BankruptcyStatistics/BankruptcyFilings/2010/0310_f2.pdf

Government Accountability Office

gao.gov/new.items/d04465r.pdf

Government Accountability Office

gao.gov/new.items/d04465r.pdf

Jesse Jackson Jr. says iPad is killing writing, costing jobs

Illinois Democratic congressman and iPad owner Jesse Jackson Jr. has turned on the gadget he used to love. Last month, Jackson gushed over how wonderful the iPad could be for the U.S. education system. Yet just Friday, Jackson said the iPad can be “responsible for eliminating thousands of American jobs.” Post resource – Jesse Jackson Jr. says iPad is killing publishing, costing jobs by MoneyBlogNewz.

Jackson claims goodbye to publishing

Seeing the textbookless campuses growing and the bankrupt Border Books annoyed the Illinois junior congressman. He states it is the iPad’s carelessness.

“What becomes of publishing companies and publishing company jobs?” Jackson asked the House. “What becomes of bookstores and librarians and all of the jobs associated with paper? Well, in the not-too-distant future, such jobs simply won’t exist.”

Jackson made even more comments. He said that iPad parts come too much from China.

“There is no protection for jobs here in America to ensure that the American people are being put to work.”

United States receiving help

According to Business Insider, there are some things Jackson isn’t considering. He is forgetting the iPad has helped out many industries outside of Apple. According to MarketCues, there is so much the iPad can do. It can help get billion dollar industries going. Publishers could have many myriad opportunities making up interactive textbooks without costing too much to students because of the e-readers and iPad.

It was expected that traditional publishing was to change. According to @Craigmod, the evolution was needed. It could be more helpful to have e-books to conserve on paper and give the books instantly. Morgan Stanley points out that with the over $2 billion in revenue on the iPad every quarter, over 65 percent of owners use the device to read books.

Changing all to tablets

Unlike Jesse Jackson Jr., publishers are likely to have to adapt. Amazon already sells more e-books than print books (per late 2010 figures). iPad users are in support of it. YUDU Media states that iPad users, in comparison to desktop computer browsers, will spend 30 times more time on websites such as Wired.com, VanityFair.com and GQ.com. There were more Wired.com iPad apps sold than Wired print editions. This is what late 2010 figures showed.

The commercial for the iPad says, “It’s already a revolution, and it’s only just begun.” There is no longer an invitation for Jesse Jackson Jr.

Articles cited

@Craigmod

craigmod.com/journal/ipad_and_books/

The Hill

thehill.com/blogs/floor-action/house/148879-jackson-an-ipad-for-every-schoolchild

Huffington Post

huffingtonpost.com/2011/04/17/jesse-jackson-jr-ipad-unemployment_n_850227.html

Market Cues

marketcues.com/blog/2010/02/will-apples-ipad-impact-the-printing-and-publishing-industries/

Neiman Journalism Blog

niemanlab.org/2010/02/the-ipad-business-model-for-news-strategies-publishers-must-embrace/

Publishing Perspectives

publishingperspectives.com/2010/11/simba-releases-statistics-on-ipad-e-book-reading/

Real Clear Politics

realclearpolitics.com/video/2011/04/15/rep_jesse_jackson_jr_blames_the_ipad_for_killing_jobs.html

TSTC Publishing’s Book Business Blog

tstcpublishing.wordpress.com/2010/02/26/ipad%E2%80%99s-potential-impact-on-textbook-publishing/

YUDU Media

slideshare.net/yudu/the-apple-ipad-trends-and-statistics

Economies evolve, pontificators pontificate

youtube.com/watch?v=D5X8W7MgbhM

Gas and oil determined to drop as prices pinch customer demand

As oil and gas costs rise continuously, consumers are reminded of the gas shock of 2008. While supplies of gas and oil in the U.S. are more than adequate, speculators have succeeded in betting the price of oil up 21 percent since the year started. But the law of supply and demand is anticipated to prevail when consumers can no longer afford to sustain demand for gasoline. Post resource – Oil and gas destined to fall as prices pinch consumer demand by MoneyBlogNewz.

Prices on oil

The sweet crude for May delivery went up to its highest amounts since Sept 2008 on the New York Mercantile Exchange. It went up to $111.90 a barrel. This week, gas prices were an average of $3.70 a gallon. That is the highest also since 2008, the summer anyway. Many studied the rise in oil prices. There were many factors that brought on it. With the government shutdown occurring in the near future as a possibility, the dollar is becoming very weak. This means everyone on a different currency is more willing to purchase commodities based off the dollar. It does not seem like the Libya conflict is about to end. The country has already stopped producing most of its oil. The United States is awash in oil considering consumers are spending increasingly more purchasing gas each day. The U.S. Energy Information Administration explained that there was an increase in oil inventories in the U.S. in the week that ended April 1. There was a 2 million barrel increase. Crude refi! nery input rose to more than 14 million barrels per day.

Forgetting about supply and demand

The United States used to blame OPEC for its oil shocks, however OPEC’s role in higher oil costs has been reduced. There was an oil conference in Paris where the United Arab Emirates oil minister spoke. He said that costs have hardly any change any longer because of OPEC. Mohammed bin Dhaen al-Hamli said that OPEC is providing the industry with the oil it needs. Traders are starting to bet on worst case scenarios which have caused a rise in oil costs, he said. The zero rates of interest from the Federal Reserve for hedge funds and pension funds are not helping. This just allows them to bet easier. Analysts estimate that due to speculators, oil futures are $15 to $20 higher than they should be. The next betting madness could be triggered by elections this weekend in Nigeria, where output of 2.2 million barrels a day might be disrupted by violence.

How much longer until an oil tipping point

United States customers may not be willing to pay much more for the gas and oil coming out. Demand for gas has gone down. In the last four weeks the drop was 3.7 percent. Unless there is another issue in the Middle East or in Nigeria, the oil prices might be getting to a tipping point. Before the Fed’s second quantitative easing plan (QE2) started last drop, oil was at about $90 a barrel. Crude oil may go down to $85 to $95 a barrel in June when oil and gas speculators change their minds.

Citations

Wall Street Journal

online.wsj.com/article/BT-CO-20110408-707562.html

New York Times

nytimes.com/2011/04/09/business/09markets.html?partner=rss&emc=rss

Industrial Fuels and Power

ifandp.com/article/0010617.html

Fortune

finance.fortune.cnn.com/2011/04/08/oil-at-the-tipping-point/

Personal loans do not trigger poverty

Jobs fight poverty. Having a job empowers customers to provide. But it seems that groups like the Anti-Poverty Coalition of Greater Dallas have the wrong idea regarding how jobs should be treated in the current economy. The coalition told the Dallas Observer that payday lending jobs must be sacrificed, supposedly in the name of fighting poverty. Source for this article – Killing payday lending does not fight poverty by MoneyBlogNewz.

Getting poverty taken care of

The coalition is hoping to create ways out of poverty. This is what CitySquare CEO Larry James said in a press release to the media:

“The Anti-Poverty Coalition of Greater Dallas is a new coalition that seeks to move 250,000 people out of poverty permanently by 2020 by coordinating efforts to keep people from falling into poverty and increasing pathways out of poverty,” writes James.

‘A treadmill of debt’

There’s a reason why the unsecured loan and quick installment loan industry is being attacked. James said that “a treadmill of debt” is created with them helping individuals into poverty. All zoning ordinances would be challenged with legislation like SB 253 and Texas HB 410 that would keep payday lenders out of the credit service organization category. By instituting a “strong zoning ordinance to decrease the clustering of payday and auto title lending stores,” the Anti-Poverty Coalition of Greater Dallas believes the shackles of poverty would lift from the wrists and ankles of the poor citizenry. It believes that many would be better off with payday lending taken away from them. There is nothing that speaks to Wall Street or bad spending habits being involved. In truth, eliminating personal loan comp! anies limits customer choice and costs Texas jobs, both dire consequences in light of the recession-ravaged economy.

An indirect attack, at best

Industry experts are worried that more would come if zoning ordinances requiring installment and personal unsecured loan outlets to be at least 1,000 feet apart with ordinances for instance SB 253 and HB 410 that there would result in being more. When it comes to getting poverty fixed, it does not really make sense to attack payday loan lenders with 36 percent Annual Percentage Rate caps which would end up shutting down the businesses and putting more people out of work.

What “anti-poverty” coalitions really want is not shown in the zoning attacks. Charitable groups like this might discover better things to do if they, including the Anti-Poverty Coalition of Greater Dallas, were only willing to understand the extant independent research that shows higher poverty in communities without short term installment loans.

Citations

Dallas Observer

blogs.dallasobserver.com/unfairpark/2011/04/new_anti-poverty_coalition_to.php

Payday Pundit

paydaypundit.org/2011/04/12/flawed-plan/

Texas HB 410

capitol.state.tx.us/BillLookup/History.aspx?LegSess=82R&Bill=HB410

Texas SB 253

capitol.state.tx.us/BillLookup/History.aspx?LegSess=82R&Bill=SB253

Texas Secretary of State

sos.state.tx.us/statdoc/faqs2800.shtml

Jobs fight poverty

youtu.be/w0v7OMt3vio

Executive payment increasing as income flat line

CEO pay in corporate America rose 12 percent past year to a median of $9.6 million. Corporate profits were up nearly 30 percent in the fourth quarter, the fastest growth in more than 60 years. As CEOs padded their paychecks, middle class workers have had to make do with less as rising cost of living cuts into wages.

CEO pay rises at the expense of United States workers

The pay of CEOs has increased during the recession, while the normal hard working American’s has declined. Even as employment is increasing, employee pay isn’t, but CEO pay is. The pocket book of CEO’s is growing daily as stock prices rise, rather than hiring more of the 13 million individuals out of work. CEO’s have no reason to hire employees when they’re making do with who they have. Economic bailout sectors were given to CEO’s in 2010 at an average of 12 percent. Yet, private sector pay rose by about 2 percent. 8.8 percent was the average unemployment rate in March. Most economists predict the jobless rate will continue to remain high for years.

CEO stock opportunities on the rise

The highest paid CEO in the U.S. last year was Phillipe Dauman of Viacom who pocketed $84.5 million in just nine months. Ray Irani of Occidental Petroleum made $76.1 million past year, making him take the place of the second highest paid CEO. Forbes also states that Oracle’s Larry Ellison brought in $39.5 million making him the third highest paid. CEOs are gaining the largest raises since 2007, with stock choice thanks to Wall Street. Knowing that someday the market had to recover, CEOs took stock options when they had little value. The stock market has recovered and now the CEOs are cashing in and making the big bucks. USA Today reports that many of the CEOs cashing in their stock choices were making well over $20 million.

The increase in commodity prices hurts the middle class

Middle-class America is having a difficult time with these payments to CEOs since they have had trouble with pay increases. The Bureau of Labor Statistics states the average hourly wage for workers has not increased by a penny in so-much-as five months. While United States workers who still have jobs aren’t getting raises, employers in creating nations are hiring new consumers who are pushing up demand and prices for food, oil, cotton and other commodities. Costs of commodities and wages are essentially going in opposite directions. Any increases that workers have received go right into their gas tanks. The average U.S. commuter buys 12 gallons of gas a week. People have reported that filling a gas tank is costing $40 more per month than it did past year. Yet the average weekly raise only increased by about $18.

Articles cited

New York Times

nytimes.com/2011/04/10/business/10comp.html?_r=2#38;ref=business

USA Today

usatoday.com/money/companies/management/2011-04-04-1Aoptions04_ST_N.htm

NPR

npr.org/2011/04/10/135272006/paychecks-cant-keep-up-with-rising-prices

Bigotry evident in continued bank redlining

African-Americans and Hispanics are beginning to lose ground when it comes to the use of traditional banking, according to the Center for Responsible Lending. Redlining and similar methods of financial/racial discrimination haven’t faded away, regardless of regulatory efforts. Denial of short term installment loans and mortgages by banks to ethnic minorities in the United States suggest that the racial divide continues to gape wide. Article resource – Racial discrimination evident in continued bank redlining by MoneyBlogNewz.

Statistics show minorities are losing homes twice as fast as Caucasians are

Center for Responsible Lending President Michael Calhoun told USA Today that U.S. minorities have "received the worst treatment, at a very high cost." Estimates that 20 percent of African-American and Hispanic householders will lose their houses in the mortgage crisis – a rate more than double that of white householders – suggest the gap between the minority and the majority is growing.

African Americans are 41.7 percent more likely to be denied a traditional bank loan than a Caucasian person is according to a 2008 study done by Christian Weller called "Credit Access, the Costs of Credit and Credit Market Discrimination." Weller is of the Center for American Progress and the University of Massachusetts. The gap widened considerably when mortgages were in question.

The inequity of a ‘dual system of finance’

John Taylor is the National Community Reinvestment Coalition CEO. He said a double standard is present.

"It's about a dual system of finance," he says. "People of color do not have the same access that most American citizens enjoy.

The option when traditional banks deny low or middle-income minorities credit is frequently no credit check payday loans from personal loan companies. NAACP Senior V.P. for Advocacy and Policy, Hilary Shelton, explained that there are generally higher fees on these than traditional loans even though they’re convenient for a financial emergency. Mortgage loans aren't swapped out by payday loans either.

Deregulation in banks

There were entire minority neighborhoods that were not able to get bank loans, mortgages and insurance in the 1990s which got many people noticing. The practice of redlining started with banking and utility deregulation because of this. While regulators installed such mechanisms as the Community Reinvestment Act and Home Mortgage Disclosure Act to help combat redlining, further loosening of the oversight belt allowed the practice to continue in various forms (for instance reverse redlining, where short term bank loans are offered in minority neighborhoods, however at prohibitive rates). This ultimately led to the Wall Street crisis, from which the U.S. is nevertheless recovering.

Changes regulators are making

• A two-year short term loan program is being piloted by 28 banks. The FDIC suggested this.
• The Department of Justice has created a fair lending unit to police redlining.
• July 2011 can be the start of the CFPB.

Articles cited

Peri

peri.umass.edu/fileadmin/pdf/working_papers/working_papers_151-200/WP171.pdf

IBEW

ibew1613.org/library/redlining.html

USA Today

usatoday.com/money/perfi/general/2011-04-04-real-estate-financial-discrimination.htm

Did banking deregulation stack the deck against minorities?

youtube.com/watch?v=FDYXAywWWdk

Apple no longer to weigh so heavily on Nasdaq-100

To temper the volatility of Apple shares, Nasdaq officials will rebalance the Nasdaq-100 index in May. Apple stock, in its rapid growth, has started to weigh too heavily on the index. Nasdaq rebalancing cuts the ratio of Apple stock to the total value of the Nasdaq-100 by 50 percent. The artificial impact of Apple rumors set in motion be hedge funds to impact the entire index with the weight of Apple shares is likely to decrease, while investors who may have avoided Apple stock due to its volatility and outrageous price could really own some of it. Resource for this article – Nasdaq rebalancing reduces hedge fund manipulation of Apple stock by MoneyBlogNewz.

Percentage of Apple on Nasdaq to drop

An increase in Apple stock has also been a rise in the Nasdaq-100 in the last few years. Since the industry bottomed out in 2009, the Mac, iPhone and iPad have driven Apple shares skyward more than 250 percent. There has been another 150 percent increase more than the 20 percent of the Nasdaq-100 total value in Apple stock since then. Nasdaq officials spoke on Apple stock. In the index, it is twice what it should be. On May 2, Nasdaq will rebalance everything. This will make, on the Nasdaq-100, Apple shares only 12 percent. The adjustment to correct for Apple realigns the ratio for the company's stock and outstanding shares with the way the Nasdaq-100 is calculated. The change also lessens weighting for 81 many businesses. Some Apple rivals will gain. A Microsoft raise is expected. It should go from 3.4 percent to 8.3 percent total. Other increases are expected in companies. Intel will get to 4.2 percent, Google to 5.8 percent and Oracle to 6.7 percent.

Huge manipulation of industry with rumors about Apple

A lower ratio for Apple shares on the Nasdaq-100 should shield the stock from future manipulation by hedge fund traders suspected of shorting Apple and spreading rumors that send the entire Nasdaq-100 down. Recently, there was an instance where Apple stock swung in price because of Apple rumors, in accordance with Jason Schwartz at Seeking Alpha. There was a rumor that the iPad 2 would be postponed until June in February by hedge fund Yuanta Securities when Apple was trading at $360. The rumors spread very easily. Soon, Apple shares were shorted by Yuanta Securities to make money. Apple stock went down $20 just two days after trading. Shortly afterward, Steve Jobs, who was given six weeks to live by bloggers, declared that the iPad would go on sale March 10. Several investors felt like they lost on a simple rumor. At the same time, Yuanta made bank. The Nasdaq-100 was affected because of this.

Getting rid of the Apple rumor impact

The Nasdaq rebalancing doesn’t take effect until next month, however money managers are already rebalancing their holdings. A drop occurred on Tues in Apple stock during this. It brought on a $4.19 decrease from $337 to $341.19. There has already been less hedge fund able to use Apple to manipulate the market. The iPhone delay rumors are, more than likely, not true. It won't impact the stock though since it is already going back up and is $15 below its high. Apple is expected to do better than anticipated in first quarter earnings while investors and traders can trade Apple shares.

Articles cited

Fortune

tech.fortune.cnn.com/2011/04/05/a-good-day-to-buy-aapl/

Mac Observer

macobserver.com/tmo/article/nasdaq-100_to_cut_apples_index_share_nearly_in_half/

MSN Money

money.msn.com/market-news/default.aspx?feat=e52a3c86-3053-48e5-91eb-970765febdcc

Seeking Alpha

seekingalpha.com/article/260887-hedge-funds-bloggers-and-the-origin-of-apple-rumors

Supreme Court hears sex discrimination lawsuit towards Wal-Mart

A class action suit seeks to extract billions from Wal-Mart over allegations of sex discrimination. The largest lawsuit ever linked to gender discrimination in the workplace was argued before the Supreme Court Tuesday. Conservative justices questioned the legitimacy of the suit as a class action.

Discrimination Wal-Mart suit to change the rules

The rights of workers versus corporations could be looked at, likely by the Supreme Court, in the Wal-Mart sex discrimination suit. Almost every employer in the United States might have to change because of this. There were fewer chances of promotion and less payment given to previous and current 1.6 million Wal-Mart employees, in accordance with the lawsuit. Back pay and punitive damages are being asked for. In San Francisco, a U.S. Court of Appeals court let the case proceed. It was one trial for a multiparty lawsuit. The Supreme Court must choose whether all the women who worked for Wal-Mart since 1998 can indeed sue together in a class action.

Suit might be bad for business

Granting class-action status would greatly increase Wal-Mart’s potential liability in the sex discrimination suit. One small ruling against Wal-Mart could be really hard on the business. It may end up needing to settle out of court after all. The plaintiffs may end up filing individual suits against Wal-Mart if Wal-Mart's side is chosen which would, in the end, make it so Wal-Mart might win. Employee advocates and United States corporations have been following the Wal-Mart sex discrimination suit because of the implications it might have. There could possibly be a ton of workers going into court for lawsuits. All corporate boards in the nation are waiting for the answer though. It would be great for them if Wal-Mart wins.

What is being questioned

The Supreme Court was not sure if the discrimination really happened which was pointed out during Wal-Mart sex discrimination lawsuit arguments on Tues. There were 3,400 Wal-Mart and Sam's Club stores that had promotion and decisions affected by the corporate culture for women according to the layer for plaintiffs. The comment Wal-Mart said explained that it’s not legal to do a class-action lawsuit for all female employees considering there have only been discrimination instances in some stores by some managers. The claim of systematic discrimination was questioned based on the one fact that Wal-Mart managers are allowed to pay men or women whatever they please at their discretion. It won’t be long before a decision is made. It is anticipated to occur in June.

Information from

Los Angeles Times

latimes.com/news/sc-dc-walmart-discrimination-20110329,0,3119421.story

CNN

cnn.com/2011/US/03/29/scotus.wal.mart/index.html?npt=NP1

Associated Press

google.com/hostednews/ap/article/ALeqM5gbOXzrZv6IDB2xzX5jdDJegcXkug?docId=879cbb4c18b44a338291cb69015c93db

New jobless claims drop; employers might be hiring

The government has declared in recent publications that initial jobless claims have started to drop recently, according to the federal government. Drops in both short term and longer term joblessness were observed. Good news on the joblessness front is always welcome. There are optimistic signs that employers might start hiring a lot of people this year.

Fewer joblessness claims filed

There was some information released by the United States Department of Labor. This was job industry information by the week. Initial jobless claims, or brand new applications for unemployment benefits, dropped in the week that ended on March 26, in accordance with CNN, though the decrease was only by 6,000. There was a 3,000 increase in joblessness benefits in the four-week average of original jobless claims. The number of new people claiming joblessness benefits was increasing for few weeks, however then turned right around and dropped. USA Today states that layoff announcements are decreasing among private corporations.

Best with a slow and steady decrease

Short term joblessness claims aside, long term unemployment claims — the number of individuals continually filing for unemployment benefits — fell by 51,000 during the week that ended March 19. There are fewer individuals as of March that continually need joblessness since the four week average had a decrease of over 31,000. Hiring has started to happen again, especially in smaller private businesses. Payroll administration business Automatic Data Processing, Inc., observed more than 201,000 new jobs on payrolls in the private sector. There has also been a rise in factor jobs in the U.S. This means more manufacturing jobs are accessible, states Reuters. Even incredibly wealthy firms are setting out to have a rosy outlook on hiring, as multiple news outlets reported that a survey of CEOs of large corporations revealed that more than 50 percent of the respondents were intending to hire individuals during the coming year.

Less in paydays to those doing more

There is good news that came from the few years of high joblessness. MSNBC reports that it caused Americans workers to become more productive. Employment has not been increasing although output in The United States is almost too where it was before the recession. It’s great because it means there are fewer employees. The same amount of work can get done though. There are fewer people getting paid and lower salaries. However, if the recent trends in employment data are signs of growth returning, that means some of the overworked and underpaid might become less overworked in coming months. They’ll likely stay underpaid, however.

Articles cited

CNN

money.cnn.com/2011/03/31/news/economy/initial_claims/index.htm

USA Today

usatoday.com/money/economy/2011-03-30-hiring-picking-up.htm

Reuters

reuters.com/article/2011/03/31/us-usa-economy-idUSN3027570820110331?pageNumber=1

MSNBC

msnbc.msn.com/id/42349181/ns/business-world_business/

Dodd-Frank will cost almost $3 billion, states Government Accountability Office

What will the cost of consumer financial reform under the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform Act be? With any governmental undertaking, there’s a financial burden taxpayers shoulder. In fact, the Government Accountability Office (GAO) has revealed in a report that it will cost $2.9 billion over five years. Article source – Dodd-Frank will cost nearly $3 billion, says GAO by MoneyBlogNewz.

Working class individuals do not always determine financial stability

The Wall Street Journal reports the Dodd-Frank Act won’t need taxpayer dollars completely to work although taxpayers feel like this is the case. Of the 11 agencies that will be responsible for putting the Dodd-Frank laws into practice, six are either fully or partially funded by revenues and assessments from businesses and/or entities the Dodd-Frank agencies oversee. Revenues such as assessments are used to pay for other ones. These include the three that congressional appropriations covers and the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau that the Federal Reserve will fund.

Banking institutions will pay the government more

All of the Financial institutions will pay more in government taxes to the United States This is what the Dodd-Frank laws dictate. GAO report findings have been used by Republicans to show that Dodd-Frank won’t be good for the economy because of these concerns of over-regulation.

To be able to support the 11 agencies in the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform Act, $975 million will be needed. This is a statistic the GOP loves to remind everyone of. The five year tag is closer to $2.9 billion. There will need to be a total of 2,600 full-time workers employed for the laws. This includes a total of 1,225 workers for the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau being started.

The other stuff the GAO report has to show

The Journal explains that these things were noted in the GOP presentation to the House Financial services Subcommittee on Oversight and Investigations:

• A Fed estimate from earlier this year projected a cost of $77.5 million to pay 290 full-time staff dedicate to Dodd-Frank implementation. The Dodd-Frank laws need three offices to help it run better including the Financial Market Infrastructures Risk Analytics, Financial Market Infrastructures Oversight and the Office of Financial security Policy.
• There will be seven full-time staffs implemented in the beginning of 2012's fiscal year with the Financial security Oversight Council. This will cost $7.9 million.
• To be able to perform Dodd-Frank duties, the Office of Financial Research needs to hire 135 full time staff in the fiscal 2012 paying $74.5 million.

Citations

Senate

banking.senate.gov/public/_files/070110_Dodd_Frank_Wall_Street_Reform_comprehensive_summary_Final.pdf

Government Accountability Office

gao.gov/

Wall Street Journal

blogs.wsj.com/washwire/2011/03/28/dodd-frank-2-9-billion-over-5-years-gao-says/

GOP on what Dodd-Frank might cost small businesses

youtube.com/watch?v=6iB2fWk7Rho