Gold May Rise to More Than $1,100 This Year, GFMS Chairman Says Gold may rise to more than $1,100 an ounce this year because of increasing investment demand, GFMS Ltd. Chairman Philip Klapwijk said. ``The effects of the sub-prime credit crisis continue to provide a strong investment case for gold,'' Klapwijk said today at a conference in Shanghai. Increasing inflation concerns and declining U.S. interest rates will put ``an already weak dollar under further pressure,'' he said. Bullion soared to a record $1,032.70 an ounce on March 17, as a falling U.S. dollar and declining equities led investors to buy alternative assets. Gold mine production and central bank sales will remain flat this year, Klapwijk said. Overall gold supply may rise by between 1 and 2 percent due to higher scrap recycling, he said.
Choosing Bankruptcy to Stay Afloat Danielle Lancaster makes $28,000 a year as a bank employee in Richmond. She owes almost twice that on her credit cards, student and car loans. Add to that day-care expenses for her 2-year-old daughter, rent and utilities, and she uses up every cent she brings in. She has cut costs any way she can, suspending luxuries such as restaurant meals and movies. But that didn't stop her car from getting repossessed. "I work to live," she said. "I see my check, and it's gone right away." Lancaster is 26 and bankrupt. Two weeks ago, she filed for Chapter 13 bankruptcy protection, which will restructure her debt. She will have five years to pay it off under a plan that lowers her monthly payments. "Everything just got to be too much," said the Richmond resident who recently earned an undergraduate degree from Norfolk State University.
Dow Chemical Hikes Prices 20%, Citing Energy Costs Dow Chemical, the biggest U.S. chemical manufacturer, said on Wednesday it would hike prices for all its products by up to 20 percent next month, the latest signal that escalating energy prices were stoking inflation. Citing a sharp rise in the costs of energy, raw materials and transportation, Dow will raise prices globally on its broad slate of products that range from plastics and films to paints and agricultural supplies from June 1. Dow's move came as little surprise to industry watchers, since prices for natural gas, a key feedstock for the chemical industry, have jumped by 56 percent since the end of 2007, and crude oil prices have rallied 32 percent to more than $125 per barrel.
Ford to Cut Up to 12% of Salaried Jobs Ford Motor plans to cut its U.S. salaried work force by up to 12 percent after its turnaround plan stalled because of the downturn in the U.S. economy, the Detroit News reported Wednesday. Ford warned last week it would not achieve its long-standing goal of returning to profitability in 2009 because of the U.S. economic downturn and a permanent shift in demand toward cars and crossovers and away from large trucks and SUVs. The automaker also told employees in a memo last week that it expected to make cuts in hourly and salaried employees by Aug. 1 and would detail those steps in July. The cuts would be involuntary and were still being worked out by Ford, the newspaper reported.
SEC examining Bear trading records Securities regulators investigating the fall of Bear Stearns Cos. are examining documents provided by the firm that detail how trading partners cut exposure ahead of its collapse, the Wall Street Journal reported Wednesday. Investigators are looking for any signs of whether improper manipulation or coordination contributed to the demise of Bear Stearns , according to unnamed sources familiar with the situation cited in the report. The probe is focused on credit-default swaps, financial contracts in which one side pays another to assume the risk that a bond or loan will go bad.
Making a good living, but still feeling strapped Only a few years ago, Americans who considered themselves middle class were scrimping to pay for their kids' college education. Now, many of them are struggling to cover far more basic needs - gas and groceries. Take Stacy and Chuck Burris. The Pittsburgh, Pa., couple view themselves as solidly middle class. In recent months, however, they've felt anything but. Burdened by high cost of food and fuel, they are having trouble balancing their budget even though Chuck Burris earns a "comfortable salary" as a software engineer. The parents of five children, three of whom are grown, have essentially stopped eating out and entertaining and are considering canceling the annual family vacation to Maine. They keep to a Spartan shopping list and have planted a larger garden. Instead of buying their 12-year-old daughter summer clothes, they are turning her pants into shorts by cutting off the legs and getting hand-me-downs from family.
Banks Choking Home Sales– Should Have Done It Earlier Darn those banks, anyway. More and more they are insisting that buyers be able to afford the homes they purchase, and that the homes be worth what is being paid. This isn’t sitting well with everyone: It’s not that people don’t want homes, it’s that they can’t buy them under the stricter lending standards. That’s how the National Association of Realtors explains the 17.5 percent drop in sales from April 2007, and eight percent drop in housing prices. But the problem is worse than even the NAR says it is. Lenders are turning the clock back to 1975, requiring larger downpayments and higher credit scores to qualify for low interest rates. That’s only prudent, but what they’re also doing is tightening appraisals on properties that are being sold or refinanced.
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