Wednesday, November 14, 2012

Connect the Headlines Game


McDonalds: Tough Economy is Called the "New Normal" Wall Street Journal Nov 14, 2012 p. B7
[Excerpted] "When the economic crisis began in 2008, no one thought the environment would be as uncertain and fragile as it is today," said Chief Executive Don Thompson, calling current conditions the "new normal."

Goldman Partners Pocket $22 Million. The Wall Street Journal Nov 7, 2012 p. C1 by L. Rappaport
[Excerpted] More than 30 executives...recently cashed in stock options awarded in the afterglow of the company's initial public offering in 1999...  Goldman partners, pocketed a total of $21.8 million by exercising options and selling the underlying shares in the three days after the firm reported third-quarter results in mid-October."  Lloyd Blankfein's compensation in 2011 was listed as $16.2 million.

French Banks Try and Import From the US. The Wall Street Journal Nov 7, 2012 p. C1.
[Excerpted] French banks are embracing a practice popular among their US counterparts - packaging loans into securities to be sold to investors in an effort to boost profits. But the shift is raising eyebrows among some analysts because the process - known as securitization - involves the creation of financial instruments that led to huge losses in the US after the financial crisis... But French banking executives say stringent new rules capital and liquidity, passed in the wake of the 2007-2008 meltdown, are crimping profits...."

Majia here: I read these headlines as follows:

The economy has not recovered. 

Profits are down because of declining consumption across the masses. 

Profits are down in the financial industry because of more demanding capital rules. 

Banksters are exercising options and trying to resume old tricks in order to maintain their grotesquely inflated salaries and bonuses.


 

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