Weekend Cocktail Chatter
Can the weather move markets? I'm sure there's an academic study on this
question somewhere, but in lieu of actually finding it, let's speculate based
on a single sample: the performance today of stock markets based in New York
City. In one sense, all bets were off, since volume was thin and a lot of
people went home, in expectation of a disaster that has yet to arrive. (Are
hardnosed New Yorkers really supposed to be taking half-days because of a
little rain?) But it was interesting that just when the rain was falling
hardest, and the day seemed gloomiest, stocks were selling off sharply, while
by mid-afternoon, as the rain slackened and then disappeared, buyers came back
into the market in force, so that the Nasdaq, for example, finished the day
almost even. I don't want to say that investors are moody, but ... investors
are moody. And so, on to Cocktail Chat.
1. "Despite yet another benign inflation number, the bond and stock
markets sold off Wednesday, apparently because no one really believes
that everybody can keep spending without prices starting to go up. Maybe we
should have the equivalent of those 'No TV' days, except we
can call them 'No frivolous spending' days. Of course, I don't know what I'd do
with myself on those days."
2. "Most unsurprising headline of the week: 'Russian Loan From IMF Seen
Unfairly Aiding Group of Banks.' At this point, isn't it clear that
fairness for Russian bankers is about as real as leprechauns
are to the rest of us?"
3. "Financial news channel CNBC took an equity stake in
Archipelago , the third-largest electronic communications network for
stock trading. Now, when we finally get interactive TV, you'll be able to
click on Ron Insana as soon as he mentions a stock and
instantly make a trade. It'll be paradise."
4. "At the end of the month, McDonald's is going to bring in a host of Wall
Street securities analysts and let them work in a local
McDonald's for a few hours. One analyst expressed skepticism to the
Wall Street Journal , saying, 'I try not to eat the food.' He added
that he often told McDonald's it had to improve its food
quality . I'd love to hear the rest of that conversation: 'I don't
drive, either. But damn, BMW has got to improve the handling in that new 528s.
And what's with the cut of those new Gucci suits ? I only wear
T-shirts and khakis. Television? Never watch it. But why is UPN still airing
Malcolm and Eddie ?'"
5. "According to a recent survey, 77 percent of all 18-year-olds
believe that they will become millionaires . 95 percent of
those 77 percent believe that they will become millionaires by day trading
Internet stocks."
6. "Procter & Gamble announced that, beginning July of
next year, it will start paying advertising agencies based not
on a percentage of overall ad spending, but rather on how successful
the advertising is in boosting sales . Ad agencies immediately hailed
this as a brilliant innovation. Of course, if they thought it was so brilliant,
you wonder why they've been content to spend the last few decades collecting
hefty checks for ads that didn't move sales a bit. Oh, yeah, you really have to
wonder."
7. "AT&T announced that it would be offering high-speed Internet
access through DSL technology, even as Time Warner announced that it
would start unrolling cable-modem service more widely. Of course, you have to
live on the Upper East Side of New York or in certain magic
suburbs to get any of the above. It's just what I want. More and more excellent
new services that will forever remain just of out my reach."
