|
|
|
 |
December 2008, Issue #33
Recession, Now Official
For the past few months, every time the market took a dive, I immediately turned to the financial websites to look for the reason. Apparently the public always demands a reason on why the market is down for the day, and the media never disappoints. High oil prices, record job losses, disappointing earnings are all common suspects, but one phrase seems to trump them all: Recession Fears. While most of the world can already feel the recession, it seems that the media simply cannot fathom being the first to claim that the recession has arrived.
Finally, on December 1st, the National Bureau of Economic Research confirmed what millions of Americans have felt for so long. The country is, and has been in a recession since December of 2007. However, as the market usually anticipates economic events months ahead of time, and prices the future trends into current prices, the mood has been surprisingly upbeat since that announcement. If the market is really poised to make a rally 6 months before the end of the recession according to some experts, I am personally predicting a barrage of headlines seeking to explain the rally, such as "Markets rise as investors are confident the recession is nearing the end" which will flood media outlets until the government officially announces the end of the recession, probably a year after the actual event.
The other interesting piece of economic news gripping the headlines recently has been the proposed bailout of the Big-Three automakers. While many financial firms received the financial bailout with little scrutiny, the automakers endured harsh criticisms from Congress and the media. Sure flying private jets from Detroit to DC wasn't smart, but I wasn't too impressed by the publicity stunt of driving a hybrid down the interstate either. While being green and environmental was on everyone's mind earlier this year when oil was $140 a barrel, with gas prices averaging under $2 a gallon today, would betting the farm on an electric vehicle make sense for the average American consumer? The United Auto Workers union has made significant concessions in the coming years, it's now up to the automakers to make reliable products that can compete, not simply relying on performance "halo cars" or symbolic technologically advanced "green cars".
What's New at Firstrade
Firstrade has completed full integration with The Investor Network, a forum for validated investors to interact and discuss the market.
On the Roadmap
SEC Filings, Insider Ownership and many other new tools are almost done. Thanks for your patience.
Firstrade's Favorites
Check out the list of stocks held by the largest number of Firstrade accounts currently. This list does not take into consideration the number of shares or the share price.
1. GE - General Electric Co.
2. C - Citigroup Inc.
3. MSFT - Microsoft Corp.
4. AAPL - Apple Inc.
5. SIRI - Sirius Satellite Radio Inc.
6. AIG - American International Group
7. CSCO - Cisco Systems Inc.
8. F - Ford Motor Company. (new top 10)
9. BAC - Bank of America Corp.
10. INTC - Intel Corp. (down from 8)
Current Promotions
- Refer a Friend
Earn $50 for yourself and 5 free trades for your friend when they open and fund a new Firstrade account that you referred. Feel free to refer as many friends as you want! Click here for more information.
- Wire Transfer Fee Rebate
Receive a rebate on the fees charged by your bank, up to $25, when you wire $5,000 and above into your Firstrade online trading account! Click here for more information.
- Free Trend Micro AntiVirus plus AntiSpyware
Firstrade is offering AntiVirus plus AntiSpyware free of charge for one year to all of our customers! Click here for more information.
- Safe Central Secure Trading Browser
Firstrade is offering all customers a free one year subscription to SafeCentral, a revolutionary secure browser for Windows-based computers. Click here for more information.
A Quick Look @ Ford Motor Company (NYSE: F)
In every issue we take a quick look at a stock that has been in the news. Feel free to make suggestions as to what stock you would like to see covered next by sending an email to editor@firstrade.com, or the editor will pull a random symbol out of a hat.
This month we take a look at Ford Motor Company, affectionately called FoMoCo by gear heads. Renowned as the first large scale implementation of the assembly line concept, Ford revolutionized the automotive industry and made the Model T an affordable transportation option for the public. Family controlled for over 100 years, Ford has created some iconic vehicles and established memorable and forgettable brands and models. In the late 80s to early 90s, Ford not only dominated the domestic car market with the Taurus and F series trucks, it also went on a shopping spree and bought various brands around the world, including Jaguar, Aston Martin, Land Rover, Mazda and Volvo. Since then, the company has been on a downward spiral, first losing the passenger car battle to Asian entrants, then not adjusting in time as the SUV-craze ended. The company has since tapped Alan Mulallay of Boeing to serve as CEO, and a turnaround plan is being executed. With the financial crisis creating a perfect storm, the Detroit automakers are all struggling to survive, and the future of Ford is very much up in the air.
So how did the great American manufacturing icon fall to the brink of collapse and wind up seeking a government bailout? Let's take a look at some key events.
Key Events:
- 1903: Ford was launched with $28,000 in cash by 12 investors.
- 1909: Ford introduced the Model T.
- 1922: Ford established the Lincoln Motor Company as its luxury division.
- 1947: Henry Ford passed away at age 83.
- 1948: Ford introduced the F-Series truck.
- 1964: Ford introduced the iconic muscle car, the Mustang.
- 1979: Ford took a 25% stake in Mazda of Japan.
- 1981: The Lincoln Towncar, one of the most popular limousine vehicles of all time was introduced.
- 1985: Ford introduced the Taurus, which quickly became the most popular passenger car in North America.
- 1987: Ford acquired Aston Martin and Hertz Rent-a-Car.
- 1991: The Explorer SUV launched a decade long SUV craze among American families.
- 1999: Ford acquired Volvo.
- 2000: Ford acquired Land Rover from BMW.
- 2005: Ford introduced a new Mustang, drawing many cues from the glory days of muscle cars.
- October 2006: Ford Taurus ended its production run.
- March 2007: Ford sold Aston Martin in an effort to raise cash.
- March 2008: Luxury brands Jaguar and Land Rover were sold to Indian firm Tata Motors.
- December 2008: Ford CEO Alan Mulallay went to Capitol Hill with the heads of GM and Chrysler to ask Uncle Sam to lend a hand.
|
|
|
