Monday, June 22, 2009
25% of Companies Suspending 401(k)
U.S. companies that offer 401(k) plans have recently ended their employer contributions or plan to do so. Details
'Vultures' circling commercial properties
Now that the housing crash appears to be nearing bottom, all eyes have turned to offices, hotels and other commercial real estate as the next properties that might be poised to collapse.
So-called vulture investors have begun popping up in search of troubled commercial buildings, which they hope to acquire at steep discounts.
In San Diego, the latest of these investors is Cypress Realty Advisors LLC, founded by commercial real estate veterans Ron Lack and Mark Wayne.
They say they have commitments from wealthy investors – they wouldn't disclose the amount – to help fund the purchases of offices and other distressed commercial properties in San Diego County, Orange County and Silicon Valley.
“Look at anybody who purchased commercial real estate in the last three years, 2005 to 2008. They're upside down,” said Wayne, a former broker with Cushman & Wakefield. “Their equity has evaporated, their occupancy has evaporated, and their debt is maturing.” Full Story
Watz Goin On In This World
June 17 (Bloomberg) -- It’s a plot better suited for a John Le Carre novel.
Two Japanese men are detained in Italy after allegedly attempting to take $134 billion worth of U.S. bonds over the border into Switzerland. Details are maddeningly sketchy, so naturally the global rumor mill is kicking into high gear.
Are these would-be smugglers agents of Kim Jong Il stashing North Korea’s cash in a Swiss vault? Bagmen for Nigerian Internet scammers? Was the money meant for terrorists looking to buy nuclear warheads? Is Japan dumping its dollars secretly? Are the bonds real or counterfeit?
The implications of the securities being legitimate would be bigger than investors may realize. At a minimum, it would suggest that the U.S. risks losing control over its monetary supply on a massive scale.
The trillions of dollars of debt the U.S. will issue in the next couple of years needs buyers. Attracting them will require making sure that existing ones aren’t losing faith in the U.S.’s ability to control the dollar. Full Story
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)