Morning Market Roundup: Pepsi Layoffs, Kodak Patents, Conflict With Iran?
- Posted on January 5, 2012 at 7:42am by
Becket Adams
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Here’s what’s important in the financial world this morning:
Kodak: Eastman Kodak, established nearly 140 years ago, soon may declare Chapter 11. It is burdened by debt, loses money and has been unable to license most of its 1,100 patents. It hopes a bankruptcy judge will handle an auction of its intellectual property. The digital assets might have value to other companies in the software and hardware IP wars. There is a question about why firms like Microsoft, Google and Apple have not been aggressive buyers already. Perhaps Kodak has overplayed its hand. Its IP may not be worth much at all.
French Bond Auction: France staged a bond auction, and there was an increase in the yields it had to pay. That indicates that investors are worried about the nation’s financial future and its AAA bond rating. Ten-year notes were sold at a yield of 3.29 percent, up from 3.18 percent at the last auction on December 1. Thirty-year note yields rose to 4.5 percent from 3.94 percent in December. The news is not good for more financially troubled countries like Italy and Spain. France’s rates might have set a firewall, if they had remained reasonably low. That would have been an indication that international capital market investors had a tiny bit more confidence in sovereign paper issued by nations in the eurozone. That, however, did not happen at the French auction.
Pepsi Layoffs: Pepsico may lay off 4,000 people and cut pension contributions, according to rumors published in The New York Post. This would be about 1 percent of the firm’s employee base. There is a great deal of pressure on CEO Indra K. Nooyi. She has not been able to improve the growth of Pepsi’s core soda business, and some investors believe her turn at the helm should end. Cost cuts and layoffs usually help boost the fortunes of big company management. It rarely lasts if sales do not increase.
Straits of Hormuz: Oil remains well above $100 a barrel on worries that Iran could try to shut the Straits of Hormuz. Speculators believe that crude could rise to $250 quickly if that happens. If oil stayed at that price for any time, it would derail the weak global economic recovery. Western naval forces may decide that it is worth the risk of armed conflict to keep the waterway open.
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TheLastBestHopeofManOnEarth
Posted on February 19, 2012 at 10:54amOil will spike but we will not hit 250. The dollar will self destruct before that. We are already printing so much money that we are at 4.00 a gallon in a resession with little demand. People need to wake up to Obama’s plan to make us a second rate country. Drill here drill now and we will be great again…cheap energy will jump start the economy.
Report Post »LOTO
Posted on January 6, 2012 at 9:28amHey Kodak !
Report Post »Remember the camera that you wouldn‘t warranty and I told you that all that you had to compete with was your good name and your name wasn’t good anymore?
Apparently others feel the same.
AndromedaMoon
Posted on January 5, 2012 at 11:25amDelta & Netmail…as horrible as it sounds, you are describing the capitalism that the Right is constantly defending. Screw your workers, screw your future (pension), screw your benefits…..their profit is the bottom line. (You’d better not bitch about it; they’ll tell you how lucky you are to have a job with them). No different than any other big corporation nowadays. Remember, the right is defending them….always. Hopefully that makes you think a little more……
Report Post »capnbrit
Posted on January 5, 2012 at 12:46pmLooks like someone needs a job – you need to go crawl back in your hole – no one’s going to take the bait darling!
Report Post »netmail
Posted on January 5, 2012 at 3:30pmThe conservative right is NOT defending ANY aberrant behavior from corporations…PERIOD. There is a lot of evil and wrong doing everywhere. Most of it however, comes from the LEFT.
Report Post »Gypsy123
Posted on January 5, 2012 at 10:04amOk we have oil all around us and in our country. We need their oil why? The EPA oh I forgot the EPA they won’t let us drill and our libs support that so our Libs would rather we kill our soldiers than drill for oil. Oh I get it.
Report Post »AndromedaMoon
Posted on January 5, 2012 at 11:03amNo, you don’t get it.
Report Post »Mateytwo Barreett
Posted on January 5, 2012 at 9:42amThe Straits of Hormuz $250/bbl oil. Really! Thats pretty funny. Anything for a buck- LYIN” BAGSTARDS! Oh, wait a minute- –we NEED another war don’t we? Let me get this straight. We have oil, Canada has oil – BUT we import oil from our enemies, they control the price, they control the volume, they control the access. .And meanwhile“due to budget restraints” we gut the military. Do you hear what I hear?
Report Post »Detroit paperboy
Posted on January 5, 2012 at 9:17amKodak, sorry to see it go, but you gotta keep up with the technology, since i have my iphone, i will probably never ever buy another camera or video camera again…. Why wlould anybody…
Report Post »Dan
Posted on January 5, 2012 at 9:00amI‘m from Rochester and my father was a Kodak’er. Their decline started in the 1980′s when the 1st round of lay-offs was preceded with a buy-out of older workers, nearing retirement. The intelligent ones took the buy-out and several started teir own small companies. This left Kodak a little dumber. Then they listened to the bean-counters and agreed to gut the Research and Development division. With that, went more of the brains and nearly all of the future. Kodak was now in a tailspin. Lay-offs continued through the 90′s and the morale of the workers was decimated. I had an opportunity to walk-through some of the buildings during, looking to purchase equipment for my employer. I saw huge spaces with nearly nothing in them. There were few workers, in front of machines that weren’t running. I felt sorry for them and how their work day must drag. By this time, they were demolishing whole buildings at Kodak Park in order to decrease the taxable square-footage. The CEO’s seemed focussed on golden parachutes and raping Kodak. One CEO announced they were going to “Diversify” the company. I was glad to hear they would start expanding into other technologies, but my glee was short-lived, as the news cast went on to explain the new Kodak workforce would include all races. I thought it already had, but I guess they were thinking they had missed an ethnicity or two. I have sworn-off their digital cameras, as the ones I had were all junk. At this point, why not skip right to Chapt
Report Post »sndrman
Posted on January 5, 2012 at 9:53amwhat a sad sad end where was the board in all this didn’t they have any forsight?
Report Post »johnlee
Posted on January 5, 2012 at 5:11pmLooking for 1300 , about to be laid off workers that have computer skills. aiw6686@ltdkate.com or 877-272-0389/ westinternationalinc.com Let’s see if you want to work.
Report Post »SpankDaMonkey
Posted on January 5, 2012 at 8:21am.
Report Post »Pepsi Layoffs: Are the result of the Obama like Corp Logo. I won’t pick-up a can………..
GeneTracy
Posted on January 5, 2012 at 9:56amPepsi layoffs.The choice of a new Obama generation,er administration.
Report Post »sndrman
Posted on January 5, 2012 at 9:56amsugar taxes? b. HUSSAIN o.’s economy? moochelle’s attack on the food industry?not being a klinton fan but didn’t he term the word and during his time a terms called comfort food…… now with these guys b and moochelle no food.
Report Post »AndromedaMoon
Posted on January 5, 2012 at 11:08amsndrman…Sounds like you’re a little preoccupied with food. Go outside & take a walk. Breathe in some fresh air. Oh, & how clever–“Moochelle”…think for yourself, ok? The woman has a rockin’ body for her age. How dare she try to make our kids, who are getting fatter by the day, health conscious? She‘s a freakin’ Nazi, trying to take away our McD’s, & Obama is coming for our guns! Oh, what is this world coming to?!?
Report Post »65Mustang
Posted on January 5, 2012 at 8:15amand the biggest low-life to ever be elected (fraudulent) president thinks he deserves another 4 years…God forbid.
Report Post »AndromedaMoon
Posted on January 5, 2012 at 11:14amAre you still living in 2003?
Report Post »Bill Rowland
Posted on January 5, 2012 at 8:04am$250 a barrel will put another nail in Obumblers coffin. His refusal to allow drilling or the consruction of a pipeline for Canadian oil will really stand out if he refuses to face down Iran over blocking the Straits.
You are talking $5.00 or more per gallon. another blow to the middle class who need their cars to commute to work or the grocery store. No more vacation trips for the average American. There will be trips for Michelle in her own AF Jet but not Joe Voter in his Ford Fusion.
If you don’t think this will Pi** off the voters you are living in Obumblers dream world
Obumbler has already shown his contempt for the Constitution and ther American People with his record of recess appointments, his subversion of congess by regulating what they won’t pass laws for.
He is taking lesson from his “Idol” Hugo Chavez but wants to take it one step further and declare himself King.
OMG
Report Post »Baddoggy
Posted on January 5, 2012 at 8:15amIt will NEVER go to 250 a barrel even if they shut down the Straights…The Saudis do not want us to start drilling here at home. Saudi influence is a big reason Obama is delaying the pipeline from Canada.. The Saudis will and can easily raise production to the point where oil stays steady. They do not want Obama gone. Obama is their best politician in place that ends US production before it starts.
NO way oil will ever getover 120 unless the dollar colapses or we print money even faster than we already are.. I do see the collapse of the dollar soon though…
Report Post »AndromedaMoon
Posted on January 5, 2012 at 11:17amHere’s an idea–let‘s try to follow Carter’s advice from the late 70s….get off the oil!! Grow hemp, manufacture cars that run on hemp oil, & we’ll never be dependant on another country for fuel…or food, or plastics….the list goes on.
Report Post »MidWestMom
Posted on January 5, 2012 at 7:55amA friend told me that Boeing announced they are closing their Wichita, Ks facility. Laying off approx 1200 people.
Report Post »daszim
Posted on January 5, 2012 at 7:51amSome old story, different day. Drill, baby, drill!
Report Post »AndromedaMoon
Posted on January 5, 2012 at 11:19amDrill, baby, drill = kill our environment for future generations….it’s basically a rallying “EFF-YOU, FUTURE” battlecry. Still sounds as moronic as it did when Sarah made it a catch phrase.
Report Post »ImJusSayin
Posted on January 5, 2012 at 7:51amId hate to see the US have to use all the fire power of 1 F/A 18 to sink the Iranian Navy. What a waste. LOL
Report Post »marthasusan40
Posted on January 5, 2012 at 7:50amOh and I was hopeful today….today is on the knees to pray day…
Report Post »juliewilton
Posted on January 5, 2012 at 7:50amYes it is….Just agreeing
Report Post »Baddoggy
Posted on January 5, 2012 at 7:47amThe end is near….Just sayin’
Report Post »MidWestMom
Posted on January 5, 2012 at 7:56amooops…dyslectic typing. Make that 2100 lay-offs
Report Post »Delta D-5-3
Posted on January 5, 2012 at 8:03amWell, I don‘t know about that but I do know that Pepsico is the worst employer i’ve EVER worked for. You can never work hard enough for them. It’s ALL about shareholders profit, and skrew the employees, NO MATTER HOW HARD YOU WORK. Same for the Pepsico Frito Lay employees. They would tell me the same thing. And THAT‘S why I don’t buy any of there products anymore……..
Report Post »netmail
Posted on January 5, 2012 at 10:01amDelta D-5-3…I too work for Pepsico (Frito Lay) and agree with every word you say. They take fantastic, highly productive employees and threaten/disrespect them continually. They monitor and micromanage every move their employees make. Pepsico’s management style is innovating the NWO when it comes to keeping people “in line”. I have to participate in and anticipate a lot of nonsense to fly under their radar. They’re evil and a little cruel actually. Part of it is a history of the industry. Another part of it is a sign of the times and a hint of more things to come. Distrust and paranoia are rising.
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