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Financial Advisor Update

Linkfest: The Week Ahead

By Barry Ritholtz

06/17/07 - 11:26 AM EDT

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Stock quotes in this article: ^DJI , ^IXIC , ^GSPC

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Yesterday, we reviewed the week that was. This morning, we look at the week that will be. Our emphasis will be on links to forward-looking columns and articles.

We have a light week in terms of economic data. Chain-store sales data are due out Tuesday, as well as May housing starts. Leading economic indicators for May and weekly jobless claims are scheduled for release Thursday morning, to be followed at noon by the Philadelphia Fed's release of its monthly economic index.

Is it that time already? Yes, it seems that last earnings season just ended, and the new one is already about to begin. The next big broker to report is Morgan Stanley(MS Quote) (on Wednesday). Perhaps electronic retailers Best Buy(BBY Quote) (Tuesday) and Circuit City (Wednesday) will shed some light on how the consumer is doing. FedEx reports results Wednesday. (International shipping is expected to be strong, domestic activity less so.)

The Paris air show is this week, and Boeing is expected to keep the pressure on archrival Airbus. Expect major deal announcements to move shares of Boeing. Ford and GM(GM Quote) will be trying, quite desperately, to extract some concessions from the UAW. (Your guess is as good as mine!)

Plenty of Fed speakers this week, but nothing scheduled from the big kahuna. I'm most curious as to what New York Fed President Timothy Geithner has to say about Asian financial markets.

Lastly, The Wall Street Journal reports that New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg, who has still not announced a presidential campaign, "will go before Google employees next week in California for a question-and-answer session, as four presidential candidates have done. The search-engine company has invited all the major candidates to appear before employees at their Mountain View headquarters, and so far Democrats John Edwards, Sen. Hillary Clinton and Bill Richardson and Republican Sen. John McCain have participated."

Now loosen up those wrists! It's clicking time:

INVESTING & TRADING

Bull market may still be ahead: Yamada: Louise Yamada, managing director at Louise Yamada Technical Research Advisors, said the stock market doesn't have "major structural problems yet." Speaking at a Reuters conference, the technical analyst said strong global growth, notably in developing countries, has been helping to offset slower domestic performance. (Reuters) See also: Bond bear market ahead? (Reuters video)
Rising rates threaten the buyout boom: "Bond prices from Tokyo to Frankfurt to New York have sold off in recent weeks amid concerns that interest rates are marching higher worldwide. That's pushed up bond yields and fueled worries that it will be harder to borrow money." (CNNMoney.com)
Handicapping chances for a summer rally: "Despite the sudden hand-wringing over yields that have climbed to their highest levels in five years, as bond prices fall, the demand for bonds from international buyers -- particularly China -- remains as strong as ever. In fact, the increasingly attractive yields should serve to lure more institutional money into the market, at least in the short term." (MarketWatch)
Why Bond Yields can be a Threat to Equities.
Booyah Slide: Web sites reproducing Jim Cramer's "Mad Money" buy and sell recommendations may be affecting his television ratings. Also, Cramer's appearance on Conan (very funny).
View from the future: In 2012, Blackstone proposes take themselves private at $15 per share.
What Are China Stocks Worth? Singapore Shows 65% Less: "China's benchmark CSI 300 Index would need to fall as much as 54 percent to come in line with the price-to-earnings ratio of Hong Kong's Hang Seng China Enterprises Index, which tracks shares of 41 mainland companies listed in the city. The CSI 300 would have to drop 65 percent to match the average multiple for Chinese shares traded in Singapore..." (Bloomberg)

ECONOMY

The Wall of Worry continues to build:
Jason Kottke points out that sushi has been added to the ever-growing list of everyday consumables as economic indicators: steak, Big Macs, Starbucks coffee, Coca-Cola, and cigarettes.
Barron's notes that There's No Inflation -- Except for Necessities "of daily sustenance as food, gasoline and The Wall Street Journal (which, in case you were too busy having a jolly time at the beach to notice when it was disclosed, next month will fetch $1.50 a copy rather than the current buck). But those are obviously exceptions that prove the point, for none constitutes a component of core inflation, so, in the larger economic scheme of things, how significant can any of them be?"(If no Barron's, go here.)
Inflation? Food, energy costs' exclusion debated: "When it comes to measuring inflation, consumers and economists often don't speak the same language. When consumers think of inflation, they often focus on prices of things they buy regularly, such as food and gasoline, which have been going up significantly in price this year. But when economists, including Federal Reserve officials, talk about inflation, they often focus on a measurement of price pressures called 'core' inflation." (USA Today)
Not Everyone Is in the Red on Trade With China: "The great Chinese export machine is producing rising trade surpluses with the United States and soaring surpluses with Europe. But when it comes to the rest of the world, it is running a trade deficit." (The New York Times)

HOUSING

Housing grows even less affordable: "Home prices may have fallen this year, but a new study says housing has become more unaffordable. And if interest rates continue to rise, the balance could tip even further." (CNNMoney.com)
Dan Gross asks, "What do Iraq and the U.S. housing market have in common? At first blush, not much. Iraq, which has taken the lives of thousands and ruined America's reputation abroad, is far more disastrous than the housing collapse, which has been merely financially devastating." How the housing collapse is like the Iraq war. (Slate)

WAR/MEDIA/POLITICS/ENERGY

Solar Companies of All Sizes Race To Develop Cheap, Efficient Panels: "Hampered by its high cost, solar power accounts for less than 1% of world-wide electricity generation. It costs 35 to 45 cents to produce a kilowatt hour of electricity from solar panels, compared with about three to five cents burning coal, according to the International Energy Agency. A different approach, known as concentrating solar power, uses huge arrays of mirrors or solar dishes to track the sun and collect its heat to make electricity. Yet even that costs nine to 12 cents to generate one kilowatt hour." (free in The Wall Street Journal)
Arabs Fear Spread of Gaza Conflict "Arab countries are eyeing the chaos in Iraq and Gaza with alarm, fearing that the Palestinian fighting could spread to the West Bank and further destabilize the region." (Associated Press) See also: Measuring Stability and Security in Iraq. (U.S. Department of Defense Report to Congress)
Pearson Is Said to Seek a Partner for a Takeover of Dow Jones: "Pearson, the publisher of The Financial Times, is exploring a rival takeover offer for Dow Jones & Company, and has discussed a joint bid with General Electric and the Hearst Corporation, people familiar with the talks said yesterday." (The New York Times) Also, The Murdoch Who Could Be King. (BusinessWeek)
TECHNOLOGY & SCIENCE
Is the U.S. winning back its competitive edge? "Maybe the U.S. isn't falling as far behind other nations in math and science education as business leaders fear. A new study suggests that American universities are luring more entrepreneurial talent from overseas than many think, fueling a boom in tech startups here." (Fortune)
I simply refuse to believe this is true: Nearly Half of the U.S. Doubt Theory of Evolution.

MUSIC BOOKS MOVIES TV FUN!

The JVC Jazz Festival NY begins this weekend, and runs for a few weeks. Highlights include performances from Cassandra Wilson, Branford Marsalis, Joshua Redman, Keith Jarrett, Patti LaBelle, Ron Carter, Jean-Luc Ponty, and Nancy Wilson.
Strain on U.S. grid to make blackouts common: "Most people in the United States only think about where electricity comes from when the lights go out suddenly. But unless the antiquated transmission grid is fixed, expensive blackouts that bring modern life to a grinding halt will become ever more common." This is from a Reuters review of Lights Out: The Electricity Crisis, the Global Economy, and What It Means To You, a new book by Jason Makansi.

HBO has been promoting the hell out of The Flight of The Conchords -- originally a New Zealand duo, who achieved somes small measure of fame on BBC radio. It looks to be absurd and fun.

Enjoy the rest of the weekend -- and the gorgeous weather -- it's convertible time!