Saturday, November 29, 2008
How Exposed Are Our Auto Ancilliaries?
Saturday, November 22, 2008
Pink Slips
Sunday, November 16, 2008
A Jeffersonian Statement
Saturday, November 15, 2008
Real Estate Developers Are Faced With Severe Liquidity Crunch
Real estate developers have relied on short-term debt (40-50% of total debt) for financing land purchases and funding construction of leased assets. Many companies have reported that borrowing costs have increased by 250-300 bp over the past few months, the bigger issue has been availability of financing – news articles and market stories suggest that a number of banks and mutual funds have stopped lending to real estate developers fearing defaults. Given slowing sales and weak cash-generation, it is estimated that some developers will be hard pressed to meet their repayment commitments.
Another issue is monies raised by some of the promoters of these real estate companies by pledging their shareholding – the impact of which is extremely difficult to assess given the lack of transparency in such transactions, which increases the perceived risk of companies.
Wednesday, November 12, 2008
Asia Is More Attractive
Monday, November 10, 2008
Global Needs Assessment: People Are Still Less Welcome
The results published in the report 'Refugee Realities' revealed a sobering reality of substantial and disturbing gaps in protection, including basic needs such as shelter, health, education, food security, sanitation and measures to prevent sexual violence. It showed that a startling 30 percent of needs were unmet in the pilot countries – a third of them in basic and essential services. UNHCR is already actively involved in these sectors, but not to the levels required.
Thursday, November 6, 2008
Barack Obama: From Frying Pan To Fire
As the federal government responds to the credit crunch and growing recessionary pressure, Obama will need to dedicate significant federal funding to expedite recovery, thereby siphoning money from other priorities and increasing pressure on the national deficit and debt. The final 100 days of the Bush administration have been a churning cauldron for the President and the markets, and Obama will quickly learn what it is like to go from the frying pan into the fire.