Archive for the 'Economy' Category
Third-Largest Maker of Solar Panels in the U.S. Moves Factory to China
January 16th, 2011Via: New York Times: Aided by at least $43 million in assistance from the government of Massachusetts and an innovative solar energy technology, Evergreen Solar emerged in the last three years as the third-largest maker of solar panels in the United States. But now the company is closing its main American factory, laying off the […]
Do I Suggest Opening an Account with the Bank of China?
January 15th, 2011WARNING: This is not a recommendation to buy, sell or hold any financial instrument. The Bank of China is now allowing Americans to open yuan denominated accounts out of its New York and Los Angeles branches. Over email, several people have asked me what I think about this. I think that keeping some portion of […]
The Rise of the New Global Elite
January 14th, 2011Via: The Atlantic: In the sort of coincidence that delights historians, conspiracy theorists, and book publishers, June 21 also happened to be the day Peterson threw a party—at Manhattan’s Four Seasons restaurant, of course—to launch The Manny, the debut novel of his daughter, Holly, who lightly satirizes the lives and loves of financiers and their […]
Global Food Supplies Stretched to Limit
January 14th, 2011Via: MSNBC: Strained by rising demand and battered by bad weather, the global food supply chain is stretched to the limit, sending prices soaring and sparking concerns about a repeat of food riots last seen three years ago. Signs of the strain can be found from Australia to Argentina, Canada to Russia. On Thursday, Tunisia’s […]
Haiti: Another Success Story… for U.S. Corporations
January 14th, 2011Via: NPR: In the aftermath of the earthquake that hit Haiti on January 12, 2010, those who were desperate to find something positive in the tragedy that claimed an estimated 230,000 lives talked about the “opportunity” the destruction could present for the impoverished nation to “build back better.” On the tragedy’s one-year anniversary, it’s become […]
Mitre/JASONs Advise Pentagon to Collect DNA and Complete Human Genome Sequences for All Military Personnel
January 14th, 201123andme.mil? Don’t laugh. Anne Wojcicki, co-founder of 23andMe, was one of the briefers on this. As you may or may not know, Wojcicki is married to Google’s Sergey Brin. I don’t know what’s more terrifying to consider: What the military is going to do with this, or what Google is going to do with this. […]
S&P, Moody’s Warn On U.S. Credit Rating
January 14th, 2011Via: Wall Street Journal: With attention focused on sovereign-debt worries in Europe, two major credit-rating firms reminded investors again that the U.S. has debt problems of its own. Investors bought Treasury debt nonetheless, ignoring the comments, which echoed prior statements by the companies and may still be months or years away from having any practical […]
Derren Brown Controls Shopping Mall Visitors
January 13th, 2011I wanted to believe that this wasn’t real; that it was just a stunt for television, with paid actors, etc. I know a bit about hypnosis, but I had pretty serious doubts about this one. So, is this real, or not? Surely, it’s not, right? I emailed Tony Rodriguez, a friend of mine who happens […]
In 2010, U.S. Foreclosures Topped One Million for the First Time
January 13th, 2011Via: Reuters: Banks seized more than a million U.S. homes in one year for the first time last year, despite a slowdown in the last few months as questions around foreclosure processing arose, a leading firm said on Thursday. Banks foreclosed on 69,847 properties in December, bringing the year’s total to 1.05 million, topping the […]
Lower Corn and Soybean Output Sends Prices Surging
January 13th, 2011Via: AP / Bloomberg: A surprising drop in the U.S. corn and soybean crop sent grain prices surging to their highest levels in 2 1/2 years Wednesday. The price increases stoked concerns about higher food prices and tighter supplies of feedstock for food and biofuels. Wet weather and abnormally high temperatures contributed to lower U.S. […]
