Feb 08 If the Dow Jones goes up by 200 points how are these 200 points measured? Question/Comment: If the Dow Jones goes up by 200 points how are these 200 points measured? Paul Solman: Roughly, the sum of the stock prices of the 30 companies in the Dow Jones industrial average, companies chosen as the biggest… Continue reading
Feb 05 How can a nation with manufacturing employment being replaced by “service” jobs expect to have a trade balance with the rest of the world? Question/Comment: Did you ever hear about the two old ladies who made a precarious living taking in each other’s laundry? My question is this: how can a nation with manufacturing employment being replaced by “service” jobs expect to have a… Continue reading
Feb 01 Microsoft Offers to Buy Yahoo for $44.6B By PBS News Hour Microsoft Corp made an unexpected bid to buy struggling Internet icon Yahoo Inc. for $44.6 billion in cash and stock late Thursday, raising a new effort to challenge the dominance of search-engine giant Google Inc. Continue reading
Feb 01 Is it possible that Boomers are not spending as we used to do? Question/Comment: Is it possible that Boomers are not spending as we used to do? I know that my purchases of clothing, food, and what is known as durable goods, are not something that I purchase as much as I used… Continue reading
Jan 30 Watch Fed Cuts Key Interest Rate Again in Bid to Avert Economic Anxieties The Federal Reserve lowered its benchmark interest rate by half a point Wednesday -- the second rate reduction in eight days in a bid to help ease pressure on jittery financial markets. Wall Street Journal economics editor David Wessel examines… Continue watching
Jan 30 Should we have a central registry of mortgage lending so that trading can be more transparent? Question/Comment: As it is with all financial crisis, I guess, a lot of the damage stems from uncertainty. No one knows how much bad debt is out there and who’s holding it. My question is: why is it not possible… Continue reading
Jan 29 A correction from Paul Solman: I want to apologize for misunderstanding a former professor and not checking myself the assertion I made with such assurance on the Friday, January 25, 2008 program that the stock market had gone up in the wake of the… Continue reading
Jan 28 New Home Sales Drop by Record Amount By PBS News Hour New home sales plummeted last year by the largest amount on record while home prices fell sharply in December. Analysts foresee more trouble this year as the housing market tries to emerge from its worst slump in 20 years. Continue reading
Jan 28 How effective have stimulus packages been in the past? Question/Comment: How effective have past stimulus packages been at achieving their objectives and their impact against the estimated consequence of taking no active stimulating role? Paul Solman: Depends what you mean by “achieving their objectives.” Last time around, people spent… Continue reading
Jan 28 Is there anything positive for the small investor in Wall Street these days? Question/Comment: Can you give any positive commentary to help reassure small investors that there is a reasonable chance to expect integrity when dealing with Wall Street? Paul Solman: More than in the past, say? I don’t see why. Here’s an… Continue reading