Continue reading Producer Prices Rose in August

Producer Prices Rose in August originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Thu, 16 Sep 2010 10:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Continue reading It may become less expensive to live in the U.S.

It may become less expensive to live in the U.S. originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Fri, 07 Aug 2009 14:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Thailand is the world's largest exporter of rice. This year Thailand wants to sell 5 million tonnes of rice, which is equal to one fifth of the world's annually traded supply. Dumping this large an amount would upset the world rice market and drive prices into the cellar.

Last year rice had a sharp jump in price to $1100.00 a tonne. Since then the price has been cut in half to about $580.00 per tonne. Recently the Vietnamese government sold 500,000 tonnes of rice to the Philippines, the world's largest importer, at $420.00 a tonne. There is talk of another sale of 1 to 1.5 million tonnes

Now you can begin to see the magnitude of the proposed Thailand sale. Thailand's problem is due in part from purchasing excess rice from farmers to keep prices high. Now, however, the Thai's are facing a dilemma. If they make this large sale, they could lose about $100.00 per tonne. On the other hand, if they don't work off the inventory, the price of rice will not rise.

Has the price of rice come down in the supermarket?

Does anyone want a bag of rice? originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Fri, 23 Jan 2009 15:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

MSNBC reports that two-thirds of people surveyed by Pew are hurting thanks to flat incomes and rising prices. I've posted on this here, here, and here. But MSNBC's stories of how these numbers affect families make for compelling reading. This could be the key issue that determines the outcome of the 2008 elections.

Pew's statistics suggest that rising prices and flat income are a chief concern for U.S. citizens. In July, 45% of the public -- compared to 24% in February -- say rising prices are the biggest economic problem. 66% say their incomes are lagging behind their living costs. Gasoline prices are hovering below $4 a gallon while prices of fruits and vegetables have risen 7.6%, dairy products have jumped 9.2%, and cereal costs 10.4% more.

Here are three of MSNBC's stories:

• School teacher. Carol Netzel, a retired elementary school teacher, says people feel as though their incomes don't cover their growing expenses. MSNBC quotes Netzel as saying: "It doesn't matter what the economists say. All the people I chat with at the grocery store, the gas station, shopping for school clothes, all are feeling very depressed because of the beating their budgets are taking."

Continue reading How the middle class squeeze hurts

How the middle class squeeze hurts originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Sun, 10 Aug 2008 08:34:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Continue reading Economy expanded modestly in Q2, but contracted in late 2007 -- Fed not expected to move

Economy expanded modestly in Q2, but contracted in late 2007 -- Fed not expected to move originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Thu, 31 Jul 2008 09:50:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Continue reading Import prices rise 0.2% in February, better than expected

Import prices rise 0.2% in February, better than expected originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Thu, 13 Mar 2008 10:22:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

The price of oil is falling, and it may stay down for some time. But prices could well remain in the $90 range.

Saudi Arabia has indicated that it could increase production by two million barrels a day, according to The Associated Press. President Bush has urged the kingdom to release more oil.

Signs of a recession in the U.S. would indicate that demand here should fall off as consumers cut back on purchases of gas and heating oil.

Even with these two pieces of news, oil trades around $92. There are factors that could keep it there which, in turn, could undermine a recovery in the U.S. economy.

Continue reading Oil finally retreats, but not enough

Oil finally retreats, but not enough originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Wed, 16 Jan 2008 08:58:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Continue reading Sensing inflation, ECB says interest rate cut unlikely

Sensing inflation, ECB says interest rate cut unlikely originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Wed, 19 Dec 2007 14:22:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Fed hopes Street likes candor as much as good news originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Mon, 19 Nov 2007 15:28:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

October PPI up just 0.1%, core PPI is flat originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Wed, 14 Nov 2007 13:35:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Continue reading A silver lining: U.S. Q3 productivity jumps 4.9%

A silver lining: U.S. Q3 productivity jumps 4.9% originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Wed, 07 Nov 2007 14:02:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Continue reading Wal-Mart rolls out 15,000 holiday price rollbacks

Wal-Mart rolls out 15,000 holiday price rollbacks originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Thu, 18 Oct 2007 11:40:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Continue reading Negotiate your way to financial success and get rich!

Negotiate your way to financial success and get rich! originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Wed, 03 Oct 2007 16:58:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Six Sigma Pricing: Improving Pricing Operations to Increase Profits by M. and N. Sodhi should be required reading for everybody in business, whether in finance, sales, or marketing. This is the most accessible, non-jargon-filled explanation of Six Sigma processes I have read. Using case studies, the authors prove that, just as Six Sigma procedures can be used to define, analyze and reduce defects or deviations in manufacturing processes, these same procedures can be applied to the complicated realm of pricing to examine and then reduce "defects" or fluctuations in pricing. Using Six Sigma methodologies company-wide will help everyone involved in setting and abiding by published prices understand that repeated, unnecessary, unauthorized differences between list prices, discount prices, invoice prices, and realized prices have a direct and usually negative impact on a company's bottom line.

Pricing consistency and control is internal to a company to a large extent. Deviations from list prices do happen primarily because different people in different departments have different goals: greatest profit for people in finance, market share for those in marketing, volumes of sales (and sales bonuses) for salespeople. The authors argue that companies need to build cross-functional pricing teams so that representatives of all groups involved with pricing can have input into how and why pricing is set the way it is for maximum company profitability.

Even readers unfamiliar with basic statistics can benefit from this book. Chapter 7 includes a basic nontechnical overview of the statistical tools involved in Six Sigma analysis. The point of this book is not to teach HOW to implement Six Sigma procedures in pricing processes, though Chapter 6 provides enough basic information to get a team started. Rather, the authors prove WHY companies should implement Six Sigma methodologies to stem "profit leaks." Numerous graphs, tables, and flow charts provide visual reinforcement of the information in the text. Each chapter contains a brief summary. Chapter 13 provides a useful checklist of steps to take, and in what order, to deploy Six Sigma thinking across nonmanufacturing processes in order to better control the outcome.

Book review: Six Sigma Pricing originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Sun, 30 Sep 2007 10:10:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Microsoft (NASDAQ: MSFT) has expanded its footprint from PC and server operating systems to internet portals and video games. Now, it is going a step further to help create the impression that it is still one of the leading edge developers in the tech community.

The world's largest software company has introduced a computer that looks like a table and works with a touchscreen. The first markets for the new product, named Surface, will be hotels and casinos where it can be used to buy tickets and play games.

The new product is a pet of Bill Gates, who believes that the next generation of PCs will need to be more intuitive and easier to use. The new product runs the Microsoft Vista OS.

If Gates is right, the new method for using PCs, making them extensions of hand motions and writing instruments could be very good news for companies beyond Microsoft. As PC sales have slowed, firms that are PC-centric including Dell (NASDAQ: DELL), AMD (NYSE: AMD), and Intel (NASDAQ: INTC) have suffered.

That may change now if a new generation of PCs drives better sales.

Douglas A. McIntyre is a partner at 24/7 Wall St.

Microsoft steps up innovation originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Wed, 30 May 2007 09:43:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

A new piece from BusinessWeek showcases Wal-Mart's (NYSE: WMT) victory over nearly all of its competitors in the TV pricing war. Wal-Mart's decision to offer a 42-inch flat panel television for the unheard-of price of $988 wreaked havoc for stores like Circuit City, Tweeter, Best Buy, and Rex Stores.

This is a great example of why all the negative press that Wal-Mart receives probably won't effect it nearly as much as its critics would like. People might complain about the company's employment practices, complain when a local mom and pop goes under, or subscribe to anti-Wal Mart newsletters. But who is going to pay $500 more for a television as a matter of principle? For all the criticism of Wal-Mart's customer service, it isn't bad enough to go next door to pay more.

The triumph of Wal-Mart is the triumph of price. Given a choice between quality and service and price, most people will choose price on items like televisions. However, I think Wal-Mart will encounter greater resistance in its foray into areas like organic foods. That demographic is likely to be less easily swayed by the promise of a better deal.

Wal-Mart kills competition on TV sales originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Mon, 23 Apr 2007 20:03:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Paper is King! Long live the wood products! Ah yes, that is the single most dependable mantra upon which my home state of Wisconsin is built. First there was the early fur trade that brought eager French entrepreneurs into the region. Then, there were profitable but short-lived mining opportunities that helped bring in the railroads. As land was cleared and transportation options increased, we became farmers and dairy providers extraordinaire. But perhaps most important of all have been our trees. Remember Chicago, we built you not once but a second time also after you burned the first efforts to the ground!

So what has this got to do with investing? Well, if you don't even feel a connection, perhaps you'd like to read further. There's a lot of activity swirling around the wood products sector and it's not all bad. For instance, did you know that recent polls have concluded that the decline in newspaper readership has stalled? Yes it's true, but the pollsters would like you to interpret that as meaning that internet (blog) readership is therefore in decline. I'm sure it makes no difference that the polls I viewed were conducted by agencies who mostly serve the televised news services (chuckle, chuckle, snort, snort). Perhaps one day they'll get wise and realize that newspapers are the apples, blogs are the oranges and televised newscasts are more like tasteless avocados, which are of little use until made into guacamole. For further input on the subject of newspaper journalism and it's future, please read the excellent article by Jeff Jarvis at BuzzMachine. Newspapers aren't suffering as badly as some would have you believe. I'll write more on this later.

This past week we received news that Time Warner (NYSE: TWX) is planning to cease Life Magazine publication. Then shortly after that we got word that we'd see the demise of Child Magazine. On both counts I'll plead, I'll believe it when I see it, or when I don't see it as the case may be. I'd give you even money on the possibility that both declarations of publication cessation are threats made towards advertising space clients as much as they're announcements to an affected readership. If I'm wrong, then you had better buy shares in the PC notebook manufacturers because they'll be selling a whole lot of them as our magazines drop out of existence one by one. Just remember that I don't think anyone ever got mugged on a subway for a magazine, and you may need to take you laptop along on your next visit to the doctor's or dentist's waiting room.

Continue reading Speculating on the changing grain of wood products

Speculating on the changing grain of wood products originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Sat, 07 Apr 2007 15:10:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.