The other GOOD NEWS today.....as a result of the banking drama....Treasury rates are falling nicely. You know.....perhaps I am weird.......but I just can not get all excited about the headlines today. Perhaps it is my age.....perhaps it is all that I have seen and invested through over a lifetime of investing......but NONE of the headline drama today is interesting to me. BUT......others, feel free to discuss and post about this stuff on here. It is obviously the hot topic of the day. Others here are surely (dont call me Shirley) interested to hear your opinions and comments. SO......POST AWAY. Give us your thoughts and comments as investors.
The.....obvious....markets today. Stock market news today: Stocks plummet, yields fall amid Credit Suisse turmoil https://finance.yahoo.com/news/stock-market-news-today-live-updates-march-15-2023-114153589.html (BOLD is my opinion OR what I consider important content) "U.S. stock were sharply lower Wednesday morning as two economic prints showed a slowdown in February, coupled with fresh turmoil at Credit Suisse (CS) that weighed on sentiment. The S&P 500 (^GSPC) plunged 1.4%, while the Dow Jones Industrial Average (^DJI) fell 1.6%. Contracts with the technology-heavy Nasdaq Composite (^IXIC) dropped 1%. Bond yields fell. The yield on the benchmark 10-year U.S. Treasury note moved down to 3.4% Wednesday morning from 3.6% Tuesday. On the front end of the yield curve, two-year yields fell to 3.8%. Oil fell to new lows on the year, with WTI falling more than 4% to below $70 a barrel. All three major indexes rallied Tuesday as crucial inflation data came in line with expectations. The S&P 500 closed up 1.7%, while the Nasdaq climbed 2.3%, marking the index's best day in five weeks. Shares of regional banks rebounded, clawing back some of the recent losses. But fresh troubles at Credit Suisse injected more jitters into markets Wednesday. The European bank's stock fell more than 20%, plunging to a record low after its biggest backer said it could not provide any more assistance. Credit Suisse on Tuesday disclosed in a report that it had identified "material weaknesses" in controls over financial reporting. On the economic data side in the U.S., the Commerce Department said retail sales fell 0.4% over the last month, in line with the economist consensus complied by Bloomberg. Meanwhile, February’s producer-price index, which measures what suppliers are charging businesses, dropped 0.1% in an unexpected decline. Wednesday's data came after Tuesday's release of the closely watched Consumer Price Index (CPI), which the Commerce Department said rose 6.0% in February over the last year, the smallest increase since September 2021. In the same survey, core CPI, which strips out food and energy, grew 5.5%, also in line with expectations. The sudden collapse of Silicon Valley Bank and Signature Bank, as well as the emerging turmoil at Credit Suisse, comes at a time when the economy grapples with stickier, if declining, inflation. It has sparked the debate among traders betting on whether or not the Fed will hike interest rates after its meeting next week. Ryan Sweet, Chief US Economist at Oxford Economics, said as stress is contained mostly in regional banks, his team expects a quarter-percentage-point rate increase following the Fed’s upcoming March meeting. “With inflation continuing to run well above the 2% target, a pause in the tightening cycle or a rate cut would be premature,” Sweet wrote. “Policymakers can use tools other than interest rates to alleviate pressures in the banking system.” A similar sentiment came from William Blair’s macro analyst Richard de Chazal, who said in light of current events a quarter-point increase will probably be deemed “more prudent.” The banking sector received a vote of no confidence Tuesday as Moody’s downgraded the entire U.S. sector’s outlook from stable to negative, citing “the rapid deterioration in the operating environment.” Bank sentiment continued to be sour for members of the KBW Bank index (^BKX), as the index sank Wednesday. Large-cap index members including Bank of America (BAC), JPMorgan Chase (JPM), Wells Fargo (WFC) and Citigroup (C) all traded down Wednesday, however. Renewed jitters remained in the banking sector regional bank stocks on Wednesday — First Republic Bank (FRC), Western Alliance Bancorporation (WAL), PacWest Bancorp (PACW), Regions Financial (RF), and Zions Bancorporation (ZION) — all traded downward." MY COMMENT One little line in this article says it all: "......the emerging turmoil at Credit Suisse,......" THIS stuff is not "emerging" news. This bank has been failing for a long time.....this is nothing new. I find it interesting that nearly EVERY article I have seen FAILS to mention this or give any history of what has driven the stock price of this bank down to the $2 range even before SVB.
I like this little article. As Winter Wanes, Prices Continue to Cool https://www.fisherinvestments.com/e...ntary/as-winter-wanes-prices-continue-to-cool (BOLD is my opinion OR what I consider important content) "Inflation is easing even more than headline data suggest. What will the Fed do next week? That is the million dollar question for many. As recent economic data beat expectations, many presumed the Fed would have to raise rates higher for longer to quell inflation. But then came the collapse of Silicon Valley Bank, and as Fisher Investments Founder and Executive Chairman Ken Fisher has said, the only thing the Fed hates more than inflation is a banking crisis. So speculation soon shifted that the Fed will stand pat or hike by just a quarter point. As ever, we think that is unknowable—Fed decisions always are. However, today’s February inflation report shows prices are cooling regardless, which should help continue easing one of the big fears contributing to last year’s bear market. The headline Consumer Price Index (CPI) slowed to 6.0% y/y, the slowest rate since September 2021. Much of the easing came from energy prices, but “core” CPI—which excludes food and energy—slowed from 5.6% y/y in January to 5.5%.[ii] This improvement came as month-over-month headline CPI slowed just slightly, from 0.5% to 0.4%, and core CPI sped from 0.4% to 0.5%. This is your clue that the year-over-year figures are skewed from the base effect—that is, from price movements a year ago. February 2022, after all, is when energy and raw materials prices spiked in the run up to—and immediate aftermath of—Vladimir Putin’s Ukraine invasion. That bumped February 2022’s inflation rate to 7.9% y/y, and that higher price level is now the denominator in February 2023’s year-over-year rate. When the denominator jumps faster than the numerator, you get a smaller rate. That isn’t to pooh-pooh February 2023’s improvement, but rather to ensure we are looking at the data objectively. The base effect will probably continue promoting slower annual rates for the foreseeable future, as inflation continued accelerating through June 2022. Yet month-over-month rates are also easing under the hood. The core rate got a lot of attention today as evidence that inflation is supposedly stubborn and sticky. But shelter costs—rent and owner’s equivalent rent—were the primary contributor there. They rose 0.8% m/m and represent 34% of total CPI—and over half of services CPI.[iii] That isn’t great for people trying to find affordable housing, but, crucially, it is a lagging indicator, typically lagging home prices by about 15 months. Given the well-documented weakening in residential real estate markets, it should be only a matter of time before the shelter component of CPI eases. Meanwhile, outside shelter, there wasn’t much monthly inflation to speak of. Core goods prices—goods excluding food and energy—were flat month-over-month. Excluding shelter, services prices rose just 0.1% m/m.[iv] Yes, those figures gloss over divergence among the included categories—some jumped, some fell. But this isn’t unusual. At any point, category-specific supply and demand trends will cause prices to rise in some pockets and fall in others. Inflation refers to aggregate price trends across the broad economy—how all the extremes average out. These days, shelter aside, they are averaging out to marked disinflation. To us, this is good news. We think it shows economic developments thus far are happening despite the Fed, not because of it. The Fed influences economic growth insofar as its interest rate moves influence loan growth. Since banks haven’t had to pass Fed rate hikes onto depositors to compete for business thus far, their net interest margins have widened—borrowing short and lending long is more profitable, supporting fast loan growth. That has helped GDP grow despite rate hikes. Meanwhile, supply-side inflation factors have improved—and money supply has slowed significantly despite fast loan growth—helping prices ease. In other words, the Fed just doesn’t have the amount of economic control most people ascribe to it, but inflation is cooling anyway. Therefore, whether or not the Fed raises rates next week, we don’t think it should matter much to prices looking forward. Now, the caveat to all of this is that it isn’t yet clear how the Silicon Valley Bank saga—which we will have more commentary on for you later this week—will affect loan growth and how much banks pay for deposits. It will take a few weeks for this to start showing in the data, so we will be watching closely. But it also seems highly unlikely that banking crisis fears would trigger much faster inflation, as they add incentives for banks to reduce risk. And notwithstanding the potential for regional banking wobbles to stoke more short-term volatility, we think continued improvement on the inflation front is likely to keep helping sentiment throughout this year, even if that happens in fits and starts." MY COMMENT As usual the people at Fisher.....are very reasonable and rational in their analysis. Of course....I happen to agree.
I have never gone through one of these....but.....I assume, not much. What Really Happens During an IRS Tax Audit An audit is less dramatic than it appears in the movies – here's what to expect and how to help it go smoothly. https://money.usnews.com/money/pers...s/what-really-happens-during-an-irs-tax-audit (BOLD is my opinion OR what I consider important content) "You may picture a tax audit like a scene in the movies: IRS agents in dark suits show up at your door and sift through boxes of papers. Instead, most tax audits are much less dramatic. They usually start with a letter, and in most cases the IRS handles them entirely through correspondence. Here’s what actually happens during a tax audit – and what you can do to help the process go as smoothly as possible. What Is a Tax Audit? “A real audit starts with the fact that the IRS computer has identified a difference in the average percentage of write-offs on the return,” Marc Dombrowski, enrolled agent in Hamburg, New York, says. The IRS computer system compares your tax return with "norms" for similar returns. Then, the IRS audits those returns that stand out. “There are different programs that the IRS has for determining which returns to audit,” Michelle Marion, managing director, Washington National Tax, KPMG LLP, says. “Individual returns are often selected based upon scoring within the IRS system. Returns are scored through this computer scoring program, and the system will label a return with a high score, suggesting that there may be some issues that would lead to adjustments,” she adds. Receiving an audit notice doesn’t necessarily mean the IRS thinks you made a mistake; it’s just that the information in your return stands out and they want more information. “The program is populated by the IRS’ experience,” Marion says. “So, it doesn’t mean anything with that particular return, as much as it says something about this is the general experience that they’ve had with the returns that report something similar. It will get a high score if the system determines that the return is more likely to have issues but it doesn’t mean that the return has issues,” she says. Some Triggers That Cause Audits If you have any self-employed or other business income, having much lower profit ratios than other similar businesses could lead to an audit, Dombrowski says. “The No. 1 way to get audited is by having an unusual ratio in your profit. This is based on your industry,” he says. He also says the IRS has different expected profit ratios based on the business code you reported on your return. You may just need to prove that your expenses were legitimate if yours is different from the norm. "If you have all your receipts and all of your legitimate expense receipts proven, you have nothing to worry about if you get audited, even if you happen to have a significant amount of expenses as a ratio," Dombrowski says. You might also be audited if the itemized deductions you claim are much higher than most people with similar returns. “If you itemize nowadays and have a significant amount of charity or gambling or medical write-offs, you have a much better chance of getting caught up in this type of audit,” he says. In addition, the IRS may conduct an audit asking for more information about credits you claimed, such as the number of children you included in your earned income tax credit calculation. There are also certain triggers they look for on returns, such as entities that don’t show any owner wages or having just enough income from a side hustle to qualify for certain tax credits, or even income and expenses that don’t make sense for the business code reported, Chelsea Monk, EA and client manager with Hamilton Tax and Accounting in Grayslake, Illinois, says. Not All IRS Notices Are Audits After you file your return, the IRS computer system screens it for errors and sends you a notice if something doesn’t add up. Not all notices from the IRS, however, are audits. For example, if you made a math error on your return, the IRS may correct it and send you a notice adjusting your refund or tax owed from the amount on your return. If you agree with the adjustment, you don’t need to do anything other than pay any additional money you owe. If you disagree, the notice will state the deadline and steps for disputing the adjustment. The IRS also uses an automated system that compares the items you report on your return with information financial institutions and employers report. For example, financial institutions report things like taxable dividend, interest income and capital gains, while employers report income via W-2s and 1099s. “The matching of income documents against someone’s filed tax return is all done by computers,” Dombrowski says. If any of those items don’t match up, you may receive a CP2000 Notice from the IRS, explaining how the numbers on your return differ from the those third parties reported; it also proposes changes to your income, tax, credits or payments. “This is not an audit,” Dombrowski says. Again: If you agree, you sign the response form and send it in with any money you owe. If you don’t, complete the form, provide a signed statement explaining why and send documents supporting your statement. Make sure you meet the deadline specified in the notice. If the information from the third party was incorrect, you may need to contact the employer or financial institution to correct it. Audit Limitations The IRS generally has up to three years after you file to audit a return but the time frame can be longer – typically up to six years – if it finds a substantial error. You’ll generally hear from the IRS much earlier, however. “Most returns are selected for examination within the first 24 months of filing,” Marion says. “If you’re 2 1/2 years from the date of filing, the chances of an audit go down,” she adds. The odds are low that you'll be audited: As of May 2022, the IRS had audited only 0.2% of taxpayers with 2019 income of $25,000 to $500,000. Even taxpayers earning from $500,000 to $1 million had just a 0.6% audit rate. The audit rates are higher for people at lower and higher income levels, and they may increase with extra IRS funding from the Inflation Reduction Act, some of which the organization used to hire more more enforcement agents. What Happens if You’re Audited If you're scheduled for an audit, the IRS will send you a letter stating that your return for a specific tax year has been selected for examination and specify what it would like to review and verify, Marion says. “The IRS conducts a lot of audits of individuals through ‘correspondence examinations,’ which typically concern less complex return issues,” she says. “With a correspondence examination, the initial letter from the IRS is computer-generated and identifies the items that are being reviewed, such as the earned income tax credit or the taxpayer’s filing status, and requests that the taxpayer provide documentation to support those items by a specified date,” she adds. “It can be as simple as a substantiation of a deduction or perhaps income related,” Morris Armstrong, EA in Cheshire, Connecticut says. “The auditor will include an IDR – Information Documentation Request – listing what they want back from you.” For more complex return issues, you may be assigned a specific auditor in the beginning – and they may set up an opening conference to discuss what they’re looking for. “It’s an opportunity to meet, usually on the phone, with the auditor and discuss procedure,” Marion says. In addition to requesting certain documents, they may also talk about what the audit means, what your rights are and how to appeal the decision if you disagree with it, she says. How to Respond to an Audit Notice The audit notice gives you a deadline for providing the requested documents. After you send them in, the IRS will determine whether or not the evidence is sufficient to support the item at issue, Marion says. “If they have other questions they would ask for additional records or information from the taxpayer to support the item that is being audited,” she says. Steps That Can Help You Make it Through a Tax Audit Now that you know what to expect from an IRS audit, take these four steps to help you get through one: 1. Keep the Right Records The most important step happens long before you hear from the IRS: When you’re filing your return, gather the appropriate records so you’re ready in case you are audited. “As far as steps people can take for an audit, being organized is the No. 1 thing that helps,” Dombrowski says. “Have your expenses organized by category as you had taken them on your tax return. Remember that for each expense you must have both the invoice for it as well as proof of payment.” Just having a check you wrote to an insurance or utility company doesn’t prove you paid for a business activity, he says. If you wrote off your business insurance as a business expense, for example, keep the insurance company bill and a copy of your check or other payment. 2. Meet Deadlines Whether you’re sending the documents yourself or getting help from an EA, certified public accountant or other authorized professional, make sure you send in the information the IRS requests within the specified time frame. “It is very important to provide organized and timely responses to the IRS in those examinations,” Marion says. “By meeting deadlines and laying out information in a clear fashion that’s your opportunity to gain creditability.” 3. Answer Only Specific Questions Marion recommends answering only the questions the IRS asks. “If you get a request from the IRS for information, I wouldn’t be providing more information than is necessary to answer that question,” she says. “The more information you give, even if unsolicited, then you’ve basically potentially broadened the scope of the examination. Try to narrow the response to any questions.” Read the notice carefully to find out what it is the IRS is questioning. You can look up more information by inputting your notice number on the Taxpayer Advocate Service website. 4. Know When to Get Help If a CPA or EA filed your tax return, contact them immediately if you receive an IRS examination letter. If you filed your own return you may be able to respond to a simple document request yourself but you may want to contact a CPA or EA for help, especially if you have questions. You can find EAs in your area through the National Association of Enrolled Agents website and CPAs via the IRS Search for Tax Return Preparers tool. Or, you may qualify to get help from a low income taxpayer clinic. You can locate one near you by visiting the IRS Low Income Taxpayer Clinic List. “The best thing that an enrolled agent can do for you during an audit is give you the ear and expertise of someone who knows the process and can be the intermediary between you and the IRS,” Monk says. “People get nervous when speaking to the government and tend to ‘overshare’ and confuse matters. If you’re working with an EA, you can tell them what’s going on and they’ll tell you what documentation they need from you. Then when they’re speaking with the auditor, they have the experience and expertise to only share what’s necessary for the audit,” he says. An EA, CPA or other authorized professional has experience knowing what the IRS is looking to resolve. “Some of the feedback we’ve gotten from clients is that we’ve helped them stay calm during what was an otherwise stressful time,” Monk says. “We’ve had business owners being threatened with a six-figure tax bill that we managed to wipe out because we knew what documentation they needed to provide to prove their case.” For more information about audits and IRS notices, visit the Taxpayer Advocate Service website, which explains notices you may receive and your rights. The TAS also offers a roadmap explaining what happens to a tax return, beginning with processing and screening through examination, appeals and litigation. Another helpful resource is IRS Publication 556, Examination of Returns, Appeal Rights, and Claims for Refund. What Happens Next? Audits typically last for three to six months, depending on the complexity, Dombrowski says. After you send in the documents, the IRS may close the investigation. “There are a lot of examinations that are opened and then closed as no changes,” Marion says. “An auditor comes in and verifies that the specific items on the return look correct and they close the examination without making any adjustment.” Or, the IRS may request more information or send a notice proposing changes to your tax return. If you agree with the changes, sign the letter and send any additional money you owe. If you disagree, the notice will explain your rights to appeal, what steps to take and the deadlines you must meet. This letter gives the taxpayer the opportunity to request an appeal to an independent body within the IRS, which will take a fresh look at the issue, Marion says. You can represent yourself, or an EA, CPA, attorney or other federally authorized practitioner can represent you in the appeal. If you're not happy with the result of the appeal, you may be able to take the issue to the next level. “If the taxpayer is not satisfied with the settlement offered with appeals, then they can go to U.S. Tax Court,” Marion says. You’ll receive a notice with your rights, the requirements for taking the case to Tax Court and the deadlines for doing it. An attorney or United States Tax Court Practitioner can represent you in Tax Court." MY COMMENT I would think that the most common audits are small business. Individual audits are relatively rare. These days with few people itemizing deductions and taxes being very simplified compared to the past...and will all the financial reporting....there is little to screw up....intentionally or unintentionally. I have never been audited...but over the years have had a few times when the IRS sent me a notice that based on their calculation i owned somewhere between $1 and $150. I just sent the money.....it is not worth my time to screw around proving the IRS is WRONG for $150.
The most amazing thing here, and has been so for the past couple of years now, is how all of these “episodes” are moving in sync worldwide, first, of course, was the pandemic, then the reaction to it; the stimulus, summer riots, real estate bubble, great resignation, inflation, and now banking…. Er… “situation” (I’m walking on eggshells here It’s almost as if the pandemic signaled a new WORLDLY era, where anything that happens- has a unified world reaction
I am not surprised by this......no, not the job losses. Mark Zuckerberg says Meta employees who work in person ‘get more done’ https://www.cnbc.com/2023/03/15/mar...ployees-who-work-in-person-get-more-done.html (BOLD is my opinion OR what I consider important content) "Key Points Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg has declared that 2023 is the company’s “year of efficiency,” and according to a release, that includes “refining” Meta’s distributed work model. On Tuesday, Zuckerberg shared a memo with employees announcing plans to lay off an additional 10,000 workers and incur restructuring costs. As part of the announcement, Zuckerberg said that an internal analysis of employee performance data suggests that engineers who work in person “get more done.” Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg has declared that 2023 is the company’s “year of efficiency,” and according to a release, that includes “refining” Meta’s distributed work model. On Tuesday, Zuckerberg shared a memo with employees announcing plans to lay off an additional 10,000 workers and incur restructuring costs. Meta previously laid off 11,000 employees late last year. As part of the announcement, Zuckerberg said that an internal analysis of employee performance data suggests that engineers who work in person “get more done.” He said Meta remains committed to distributed work, but he encouraged employees to find more opportunities to work with one another in person. “Our early analysis of performance data suggests that engineers who either joined Meta in-person and then transferred to remote or remained in-person performed better on average than people who joined remotely,” Zuckerberg said. “This analysis also shows that engineers earlier in their career perform better on average when they work in-person with teammates at least three days a week.” Meta was one of the first tech companies to allow its employees to begin working remotely during the early days of the covid pandemic. The company carried its flexible-work policies into 2021 when it announced that workers at all levels of the company could request to work remotely full-time. Meta is still promoting remote roles in 2023, and many employees have the option to work in person. But as major tech companies like Amazon suddenly announced plans to return to the office at least three days a week earlier this year, Meta may have started to reconsider its position. “This requires further study, but our hypothesis is that it is still easier to build trust in person and that those relationships help us work more effectively,” Zuckerberg said." MY COMMENT As a former business owner and manager I say.......DUH. This is patently obvious to me. In fact.....I say this is why the.....Metaverse......will be a failure.
Speaking of the METAVERSE.....this is a really funny and really sad article. I love and highly recommend reading it. Who Is Still Inside the Metaverse? Searching for friends in Mark Zuckerberg’s deserted fantasyland. https://nymag.com/intelligencer/article/mark-zuckerberg-metaverse-meta-horizon-worlds.html
Actually you're not very far off in that summation. If you think about how globally intertwined we are now. Our companies/businesses are everywhere and vice versa. We are in places that we have adversarial relationships with. We talk and enact sanctions on trade, screw with each other from a bluffing military standpoint, question human rights, and so on. The next day we are announcing a new Apple plant there or any company you want to pick. We don't like each other, but we can't seem to live without each other. China is a good example. We see all of this grandiose puffing about over trade secrets, spying, military posturing, human rights, and on and on. Yet, we flood the place with businesses and they do the same here. Money. Money changes everything. People (countries) will literally go to any level for...Money. It does not matter the consequences or risk. Globally, we are more connected now than at anytime ever. You mentioned the pandemic. Who can forget. I mean the world basically stopped for a period of time. We and other places could not get the most simple, mundane things at times. The US is often looked upon as the global leader. Actually, we are the global payor. We have MONEY, so we have "friends."
It's too bad we are so dependent on a country that is trying to sabotage, subvert us, and steal our technology. In response, mass production will be moved from China to India. Problem solved. lmao!
A sign of desperation....and no response to the request. Looks like the shares are currently at $1.88. What a dumpster fire. Apparently nobody wants to go on record and say "everything is fine here...really, we are in a strong position." Credit Suisse appeals to Swiss central bank for show of support Credit Suisse has appealed to the Swiss National Bank for a public show of support after its shares cratered as much as 30 per cent, sparking a broader sell-off in European and US bank stocks. The request for a reassuring statement about Credit Suisse’s financial health came after its shares sank as low as SFr1.56, having earlier been halted amid a heavy sell-off, according to three people with knowledge of the talks. Credit Suisse also asked for a similar response from Finma, the Swiss regulator, two of the people said, but neither institution has yet decided to intervene publicly. Looks like the Swiss National Bank is going to offer liquidity after all. The Swiss National Bank said Wednesday that Credit Suisse is currently well capitalized but that the central bank will provide additional liquidity if necessary. (CNBC).
While we are wallowing around in the mud with the bank drama...It appears that Signature (SBNY) was facing a criminal probe prior to its collapse. With all of the sketchy "stuff" that has been so prevalent in the investing world the past few years, it makes one wonder just how many others are going to be exposed in "banking" and/or investing. The environment has been ripe for this type of engagement for awhile. Signature Bank Faced Criminal Probe Ahead of Firm’s Collapse (Bloomberg) -- US prosecutors were investigating Signature Bank’s work with crypto clients before regulators suddenly seized the lender this past weekend, according to people familiar with the matter. Justice Department investigators in Washington and Manhattan were examining whether the New York bank took sufficient steps to detect potential money laundering by clients — such as scrutinizing people opening accounts and monitoring transactions for signs of criminality, the people said. The Securities and Exchange Commission also was taking a look, two people said, asking not to be named because the inquiries are confidential. The Federal Deposit Insurance Corp., which took control of the firm, declined to comment. A representative for the entity that was set up by the government after the seizure also declined to comment. Representatives for the Justice Department, US Attorney’s Office in Manhattan and SEC declined to comment. But a spokesperson for the agency, which brings only civil cases, pointed to a statement from Chair Gary Gensler on Sunday, when authorities took steps to bolster US lenders and shut Signature. “We will investigate and bring enforcement actions if we find violations of the federal securities laws,” the SEC chief said at the time. The bank and its staff haven’t been accused of wrongdoing, and the investigation could end without further action. It’s unclear when the probes involving Signature Bank were opened and whether it had any effect on the decision by state regulators to close the bank on Sunday. States regulators have said they lost faith in management after the bank failed to provide “reliable and consistent data.”
funny how Zuckerberg drank the pandemic kool-aid so badly. Money started to pour in into tech while people stayed at home, he LITERALLY changed his company’s name to reflect his flawed vision. That, if nothing else, really shows you how DUMB people were during the pandemic. Not just ordinary folks, even tech giant triliionaires
Amen Zukodany. Actually not just during the pandemic.....many of these people are simply DUMB......all the time and always have been.
My long time REFUSAL to ever invest inn bank stocks, financial stocks, insurance companies, etc, etc served me very well today. I had a very nice moderate GAIN today. Seven stocks UP and only three DOWN. the downers were.....TSLA, HON, and NKE. I also got in a nice big beat on the SP500 by 1.22%.
That entire article on the Metaverse that I put up the link above is so telling as to the future of Meta. I have never invested in that company and never will. A total waste of money with the focus on the Metaverse.......plus.....an outdated business model anyway.
just checking in. so they made an outstanding offer on the new job i mentioned and i accepted. naturally, a little more work has come my way. they wouldn't accept the clause about spending more time on stockaholics.
Actually the close today was a VICTORY.....compared to what was going on this morning. Dow closes more than 250 points lower Wednesday as bank crisis spreads to Europe: Live updates https://www.cnbc.com/2023/03/14/stock-market-today-live-updates.html (BOLD is my opinion OR what I consider important content) "The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell Wednesday as investors contemplated the future of Credit Suisse, a bank with a large international and U.S. presence, and peers. The Dow Jones Industrial Average ended 280.83 points, or 0.87%, lower at 31,874.57. The S&P 500 dropped 0.7% to 3,891.97, while the Nasdaq Composite was up just 0.05% at 11,434. The major averages, however, were well off their session lows. The Dow at one point was down 725 points, and the S&P 500 briefly gave up all of its 2023 gains. The indexes regained some ground in afternoon trading following announcement from a Swiss regulator that the country’s central bank would give Credit Suisse liquidity if necessary. Investors were concerned earlier in the day after the Saudi National Bank, Credit Suisse’s largest investor, said Wednesday it could not provide any more funding, according to a Reuters report. The news came after the Swiss lender said earlier this week it had found “certain material weaknesses in our internal control over financial reporting” for the years 2021 and 2022. U.S.-listed shares of Credit Suisse were last down nearly 14%, off session lows. In recent days, a crisis in the financial sector has centered around regional banks as Silicon Valley Bank and Signature Bank collapsed, both casualties of poor management in the face of eight interest rate hikes by the Federal Reserve in the last 12 months. Attention turned to the big banks on Wednesday. “We’re seeing the bank turmoil that started in Silicon Valley, it’s really spreading across the globe,” said Edward Moya, senior market analyst at Oanda. “The markets are realizing that you’re seeing the banks are in trouble because a lot of their profitability models have been based on, for the most part, zero-interest rates.” As Credit Suisse dragged down the European Bank sector, U.S. big bank shares declined in sympathy. Citigroup slid 5%, while Wells Fargo and Goldman Sachs each lost 3%. Bank of America slipped just under 1%. The Financial Select Sector SPDR Fund (XLF) lost 2.6%, giving up its 2% pop on Tuesday. Regional banks, which rebounded Tuesday to lift sentiment for the broader market, fell back into the red again. The SPDR S&P Regional Banking ETF (KRE) was down 1.6%, pushed down by losses of more than 20% and 10% in First Republic Bank and PacWest Bancorp respectively. “There’s just such so much information to digest,” said Dan Eye, chief investment officer at Fort Pitt Capital Group. “Investors (are) scrambling to position around it.”" MY COMMENT There is some REAL inaccurate information or SPIN in the article above. First this statement: "....the Swiss lender said earlier this week it had found “certain material weaknesses in our internal control over financial reporting” for the years 2021 and 2022." Here is what this really means: “the group’s internal control over financial reporting was not effective” because it failed to adequately identify potential risks to financial statements." "The board concluded that the “material weakness could result in misstatements of account balances or disclosures that would result in a material misstatement to the annual financial statements of Credit Suisse,” the annual report said. Credit Suisse is urgently developing a “remediation plan” to strengthen controls." https://www.cnn.com/2023/03/14/investing/credit-suisse-financial-reporting-weakness/index.html This simply sounds like......"alleged".....fraud or criminal mis-reporting of financial results. This bank is simply a PENNY STOCK.....and has been for a long time. I also see that certain executives have......"voluntarily waived".......certain stock options that were granted due to the above. And this statement above is UNTRUE.....in my personal opinion: "We’re seeing the bank turmoil that started in Silicon Valley, it’s really spreading across the globe" Actually NO.....Credit Suisse and their problems have NOTHING to do with SVB. They have been ongoing for 1-2 years now and the BIG "percentage drop" today was a result of their.....alleged.....reporting fraud or crimes. You can not trust anything that this bank puts out or says. I personally do not see it as any big deal when some PENNY STOCK goes from $2.49 per share to $2.16. If the Swiss government had the guts they would be sending in the....."alleged"..... criminal auditors. Just my personal opinion.......and also my personal opinion......that bank needs to be shut down.
