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Matters Financial |
9 June 2003
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European Central Bank Finally Cuts Rates
As the Eurozone edged closer to a destructive deflationary spiral, the European Central Bank opted to use 50 basis points in its ammunition belt and dropped interest rates to 2%. This is the lowest level seen in Germany since 1870 when records began. However, elsewhere in Europe, things aren't quite so bad -- Sweden and Britain, which are outside the Eurozone, have kept their rates stable. In retrospect, staying out of the Euro was a wise move. Click here to read more.
Martha Stewart is Indicted
It is said that under America's grand jury system, a decent prosecutor can get a ham sandwich indicted. So, the news that Martha Stewart was indicted on obstruction of justice and a few other things related to her ImClone stock trading required several grains of salt. What appalls most are the faux feminists who complain that she's facing prosecution while the boys at Enron, etc., are not. The tu quo argument did not work at Nuremburg, and it should work in this case. Click here to read more.
Palm to Buy Handspring
The personal digital assistant market is about to undergo a big change. Palm is going to buy Handspring (as one wag at the Financial Times put it, forming "Palmsprings"), and the two look better as an entity than one, so the stock may take off. Unfortunately, PDA sales are down so far that some technology gurus have begun to wonder if they are a tool whose time has come and gone. Click here for our view.