Tag: Prof Note

19 September 2018

 

Question: According to MSN:Lifestyle, what are seven (7) signs you may have clogged arteries?

 

China hits back at trump tariffs by targeting $60bn of US goods – Pg. 1

–          Beijing retaliated against Donald Trump’s decision to impose duties on more than half of all Chinese imports by slapping new tariffs on $60n of American goods and scolding the US president for a lack of “good faith” in bilateral trade negotiations

–          R Trump continued to give few signs he is willing to compromise, warning on Twitter that he was willing to impose another round of duties if China targeted US farmers or blue-collar workers

–          Beijing is targeting fewer goods than Washington because China imports less from the US than vice versa.  US exports to China last year totaled about $130bn, compared to Chinese exports to the US valued at more than $500bn

 

Wall Street shake-up scatters US technology groups – Pg. 19

–          Tech investors are braced for what some have called a “de-Fannging” of the sector – a reference to a handful of big US tech companies that have led Wall Street to record highs in recent years

–          From next week, Facebook an Alphabet will move form information technology into communication services, a revamped sector whose creation is the most striking change in a shake-up of the widely tracked classification system that investors use to help navigate the world’s biggest stock market

–          When the dust has settle, seven tech stocks that represent roughly a fifth of the S&P500 information technology sector will be reclassified as communication services…

–          Some 16 stocks, including Netflix, whose combined market cap accounts for about 22% of the consumer discretionary sector, will also join the renamed sector that is home to just three companies including Verizon and AT&T

–          As a rough estimate, ….the entire sector reclassification will drive about $20bn in trading volume.  The changes mean that the tech sector, which has swelled to account for about a quarter of the total market value of the S&P 500, thanks, in part, to the meteoric rise of the Fanngs, will shrink to about a fifth

–          The revamp of what is currently called the telecoms serevices sector will force investors to rethink what has been considered a defensive part of the market with a high dividend yield

–          The proposed changes will also effect valuations.  The telecoms sector trades at a low forward price-to-earnings ratio of 10.2 Times, …while the forward P/E of the communication services to 18.6 times

 

Answer: (1) Erectile dysfunction (ED); (2) Baldness; (3) Ear Crease; (4) Calf pain when you walk; (5) A tight jaw; (6) Lower back pain; (7) A smoking habit

18 September 2018

 

Question: According to MSN:Money, what are 15 signs your employer wants you to retire?

 

Fed official eyes rate rise to balance jobs market risk – Pg. 4

–          US financial stability could be threatened if the Federal Reserve keeps borrowing costs too low and allows an overheating jobs market to encourage excessive risk-taking…

–          Concerns that America’s economic boom could lead to hazardous risk-taking in financial markets have begun to feature more prominently in Fed discussions, as the US experiences above-trend growth at a time when tax cuts and public spending rises are fueling the economy

–          The Fed is gearing up for a further rise in short-term interest rates from the current range of 1.75-2.00% in its September 25-26 meeting, with more tightening possible in December and next year as unemployment hovers well below Fed estimates of sustainable levels

–          Trade tension could add to those inflation pressures,…

–          Among the areas in the Fed’s spotlight are commercial real estate and sections of corporate debt

 

USA Inc faces growing threat from activist debt investors – Pg. 13

–          US companies are facing an escalating threat from activist debt investors, who want to push them into default to make a profit from bearish bets on their bonds

–          The corporate defence law firm Wachtell Lipton has labelled the practice “net-short debt activism”.  In such cases, a hedge fund buys a meaningful enough position in a company’s bonds to agitate for the company to be declared in default – and an even larger position in a company’s credit default swaps, which pay compensation when that default is confirmed

–          The practice of so-called “manufactured” defaults has sparked controversy, thanks to the case of Hovnanian, a US builder, which agreed to default on some of its bonds in return for new low-cost financing from a hedge fund, Blackstone’s GSO.  Blackstone stood to gain from the subsequent CDS payout

–          Lawyers and analysts say that the benign US economy and low corporate default rate means distressed debt funds, which normally invest in troubled companies, are looking at otherwise healthy companies to generate trading opportunities

 

Answer: (1) They stop assigning long-term projects; (2) You’re given projects that don’t require strategizing; (3) They stop investing in you; (4) Your salary and career growth has halted; (5) They try and make your role redundant; (6) Rude comments about your age; (7) Your supervisor becomes more hands-on; (8) You’re treated differently than younger colleagues; (9) Disciplinary Action is taken for no reason; (10) Your retirement becomes a topic of conversation; (11) A lot of talk about cost-cutting measures; (12) An incentive is thrown your way; (13) Your work hours are reduced; (14) You’re isolated from the group; (15) You’re not given the proper resources (Prof Note: I have seen all of these utilized to push someone out, i.e. not just for retirement)

17 September 2018

 

Question: According to MSN, what is the daily cost of living like a billionaire?

 

Argentina aims to reassure IMF with austerity budget – Pg. 1

–          Mr Marci’s government and the IMF are negotiating over Argentina’s request to reinforce a $50bn bailout package announced in June.

–          …spending cuts of about 1.4% of GDP, and revenue measures, including new export taxes that will raise 1% of GDP, should enable the government to balance the federal primary budget next year

 

What I wish I had known at 18 – and advice for university students – Pg. 10

–          First, if you go out to parties or bars make sure you drink as many glasses of water as alcohol.  Secondly, be friendly with everybody because you never know where they will end up.  Third, follow your passions

–          The first people you meet are not necessarily going to be your best friends – don’t worry about it.  Don’t get too caught up in trying to go to the parties everyone’s expected to go to.  Try to find people with whom you can forge close connections and who will be with you decades afterwards

–          If you make a mistake today [picking a major and going to University] and want to switch courses, there are financial consequences.  The other thing I wish I’d known is how valuable it is to get work experience, especially early on when the academic pressures are slightly less

–          The thing I regret most is spending too much time in college bar with other people moaning about stuff.  It’s the time in your life when you’re free to absorb interesting stuff.  I wish I had listened better to my peers and to academics.  Learn to listen before you go

–          What matters is developing a wide network.  The thing that catches people is they go deep far too early, get stuck in one profession and don’t have any connections outside that area

–          I wish I had taken more classes that had nothing to do with my major, and relaxed and enjoyed it

–          The lesson I wish I’d learnt, and I still haven’t, is the ability to shut up

–          I wish I’d known is that it didn’t matter what precise grade I got.  What mattered was that I understood what I was interested in and focused on that in a way that was useful for the jobs Market

–          (Prof Note: (1) Being right is not often not enough; (2) Relationships and network are meaningful in so many ways, i.e. personal and professional; (3) Question the status quo….always!; (4) A sunset is better when shared)

 

MBA applications fall at top US business schools – Pg. 11

–          Business schools blame the decline on conditions in the US market, where a combination of fast-rising tuition fees and a lack of employers willing to fund student places has pushed candidates to target only a few elite institutions

–          …applications to Harvard, are down by 4.5% on the previous year to its two-year full-time MBA course

–          The decline in US demand is down to a mix of US immigration curbs, a growing number of alternative and cyclical movements in demand for full-time study…

–          A perception that overseas students are unwelcome in the US…

–          More damaging have been the tightening of immigration restrictions over many years, a rise in the quality of business schools in Europe and Asia and the expectation that business education should be obtainable whenever and wherever students want it in an age of online delivery…

 

Answer: (1) Mansion Costs: Varies, But can top over $15,000/day; (2) Fancy car costs: $411+/day; (3) Luxury Yacht Costs: Up to $5,890/day; (4) Entertaining Costs: Up to $82,191; (5) Personal Trainer Fees: $1,340/day for one hour; (6) Personal Chef Costs: $515/day; (7) Nanny Fees: $220/day; (8) Butler Costs: $272/day; (9) Cleaning Service Costs: $267/day; (10) Outdoor Home Maintenance Costs: $125/day; (11) Personal Security Costs: $21,370/day; (12) Personal Assistant Costs: $246/day; (13) Lawyers and Legal Fees: $1,500/billiable hour; (14) Vacation Home Costs: $3,000+/day (Prof Note: My personal advice: weekend home and rent the holiday home.  When I run the numbers, this makes the most economic sense.  However, can one put a price on personal pride?  Do what makes you happy (and that you can afford)); (15) Private Jet Costs: $2,254+/day (Prof Note: Every time I look at NetJet to Nevis the calculations are clear, American Cattle (Economy) class wins every time!); (16) Total Cost to live like a billionaire: $134,601+/day

15 September 2018

 

Question: What are 15 Ways to be more attractive, according to science (Prof Note: The article appears to be about males)?

 

A post-crisis cure that has stored up economic pain – Pg. 11

–          Today most agree that the final response to the crisis – bank bailouts, endless quantitative easing and a dose of fiscal stimulus – was the correct one

–          …wave of experts now insisting another crisis is just around the corner (Prof Note: Including ME!)

–          Thin about what QE and super-low interest rates have done.  The idea was that they would prevent corporate and personal bankruptcies but also – as explained by the US Federal Reserve and the BoE – push up asset prices so that the wealth effect (the idea that if you feel richer you spend more) would drive consumption and hence recovery

–          The wealthy, and those in a position to borrow and take risks, have become wealthier

 

Asia resilient in EM crisis but dangers await – Pg. 15

–          Emerging economies are being challenged by a strengthening US dollar and the scaling down of ultra-loose monetary policy in developed markets but parts of Asia are proving more resilient

–          Among the most exposed emerging economies are those with current account deficits that rely on foreign capital.  When US rates rise, attracting foreign capital into developing economies is a harder feat

–          Many Asian economies have built current account surpluses with the exception of Indonesia, India and the Phillipines, which last year had respective current account deficits of 1.7% of GDP, 1.5% and 0.8%

–          Some highlight the big change from Asia’s financial crisis in 1997 that was sparked by an increase in US rates that sucked capital out of the region

–          China’s debt levels are eye-wateringly high, amounting to 299% of GDP in the first quarter, a risk that has deterred some investors

 

Question: (1) Travel with an entourage (Prof Note: I never go anywhere without my posse!); (2) Befriend a baby (Prof Note: I once had a peer that was recently divorced with a young baby tell me, “Babies are “chick” magnets!); (3) Walk your dog (Prof Note: I actually had another peer purchase a dog just to meet “the ladies”); (4) Give your razor a break (5) Lend a helping hand (Prof Note: This is just about being a good/great person); (6) Master your gait; (7) Craft your online dating bio wisely; (8) Steer clear of selfies; (9) Smile (but, like, slowly); (10) Stay strong, but not too strong; (11) Flaunt your battle scars (Prof Note: I often say to peers, the older you get, the more scars are expected on your face); (12) Carry a guitar (Prof Note: I had a student that rode a motorcycle.  Handsome bloke.  The first day of class he swaggered in with his helmet and the woman looked.  I took the opportunity to say, “Now why do you carry a helmet when I saw you riding the bus?”  He took the comment in great stride! J); (13) Ditch the corny pickup line ; (14) Manspreading can be a good thing; (15) Buy a bouquet