Economic Woes Deliver Another Sucker Punch; Not So Fast Ruth Madoff – July 29, 2009

Economic Woes Kick Stocks Lower

As expected, a disappointing durable goods orders report sent stocks deeper into negative territory on Wednesday. The dip in order for long term goods rattled investors and made them question whether these economic conditions will restrain commodity demand? Oil prices took a hit and dragged energy shares lower. Even the long awaited deal between Microsoft and Yahoo was not enough to pull the tech-heavy Nasdaq out of its slump. The Fed’s beige book, a snapshot of economic conditions across the central bank’s 12 districts, showed signs of an economic recovery. The news helped stocks cut some early losses. A sluggish five-year Treasury auction further weighed on stocks during afternoon trading. Investors are definitely not ready to give up on stocks, but these recent developments are making them more cautious about trades. The dollar was mixed versus other major currencies and gold price rose to $929.70 an ounce.

Don’t be Fooled by Wall Street’s Empty Boom

Video – Stop Trading!

Telecommunications Lead Retreat

A day after reporting that it would purchase Virgin Mobile USA for $483M (the verdict is still out on this decision), Sprint Nextel made headlines again. Sprint Nextel surprised analysts and reported a wider second quarter loss. It’s quite shocking that analysts didn’t see this coming, especially since Sprint Nextel’s subscribers have been packing their bags and moving to other carriers for months now. Dear Mr. Hesse, the Palm Pre is not helping Sprint Nextel. It’s probably time to come up with another plan.

Video – Palm: Welcome to Cramer’s Chopping Block

If innovation- and competition-spurring iPhones and BlackBerrys are seen as a problem, regulators in Washington are asking the wrong questions. The Misguided Urge to Regulate Wireless

Shares of Qwest Communications couldn’t stay in positive territory despite profits beating analysts’ expectations.

Motorola Inc. didn’t perform much better as investors await second quarter results due out on Thursday. Mr. Sanjay Jha better deliver because investors are getting tired of playing the waiting game with Motorola. The android lovers can rejoice now because Motorola is moving forward with all of you in mind.

The Deal Heard Around the World

Microsoft MSFT and Yahoo finally made a deal today. No, you’re not dreaming! After months and months (did I mentioned months?) of negotiations Microhoo or Yahosoft has finally been created. What does this deal mean for Google? This deal puts a little pressure on Google, but only a little because the company is still golden. The pact between Microsoft and Yahoo will likely face scrutiny by regulators and Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer expects Google to pour some gasoline on the fire. This deal also leaves a few unanswered questions.

The Microsoft-Yahoo Deal: Lessons for Startups

The Yahoo-Microsoft Deal from Searchers’ Perspective

Video – Microsoft-Yahoo Deal: An Antitrust Issue?

Other Juicy Tidbits

Sorry Ruth, you can’t get off that easy. We all know you wanted to take your $2.5M and move to North Carolina to be closer to Bernie Madoff, but a court appointed trustee is not finished with you just yet. Meanwhile, your husband all of sudden decided to be ‘very honest’ with his victims.

Can the Environmental Protection Agency make up its mind already? The agency has once again altered the “cash for clunkers” program for 164 automobiles. You should probably take the eligibility test before heading over to the dealership.

Show me the money! That’s what some poor countries are screaming at the International Monetary Fund. The organization announced that it is currently mobilizing a number of new resources to lend to 80 of the world’s poorest countries.

Is the Chinese economy in the same state as the American economy was in the summer of 2007? In other words, all pumped up and ready to pop? Does anyone know how to say ‘bubble’ in Mandarin?

With all the hype on how much the economy is improving, Americans can only hope the ‘powers that be’ are taking the necessary steps to do better in the next financial cycle. We can do our part if we take these steps.