Dow Jones plummets as Cisco cuts 4000 jobs + Wal-Mart sales disappoint + Unrest in Egypt grows … World markets follow

Captain Rick: The Dow Jones plummeted 2.4% during the past month, attributed in part by the news of Cisco cutting 4000 jobs and Wal-Mart sales falling short of expectation. This combined with the growing violence in Egypt caused major world markets to follow the Dow’s decline.

The above chart shows the significant, recent decline of the Down Jones, down 2.4% in the past month. It is the largest dive in values in 2 months and one of the top 5 declines since the market crash of 2008. I break down the issues affecting this loss…

Cisco, the worlds largest network company providing services to most of the largest companies and government entities announced it is cutting 4000 jobs.  Cisco touches all parts of the networking process, and the company’s success is largely tied to sentiment about the world’s economy. Many large businesses and government agencies are Cisco customers, and they’re unlikely to buy up networking equipment when they’re worried about the economic situation. I see this as a major signal that the world economy is in much more dire shape than what we are being led to believe from the typical ‘show business hype’ on the evening news. World markets are echoing the concern.

Wal-Mart, the world’s largest retailer, reported lower than expected sales for the second quarter. When the world cuts back on purchases at Wal-Mart, it raises a red flag for me.  It makes me wonder how healthy the recovery from the Great Recession really is.

Disturbance in Egypt has caused over 400 deaths and 3500 injured. While most of financial market ‘gurus’ did not mention this as one of the causes of the recent market plummet, I believe it played a role.

The major economies of the world continue to tread on very shaky ground. There has been lots of news about our ‘improving economy’. I suggest that much of this is based on unfounded news ‘hype’. Our world’s economy is like a train riding on fragile rail, heading for the edge of the ‘Global Fiscal Cliff’.

I welcome your comments, likes, shares and following of my blog! (If not visible, click the red title above)

Associated ATRIDIM NEWS JOURNAL Report Categories:

Dow Jones & World Market News

Captain Rick’s FISCAL CLIFF 101 Course

Captain Ricks INVESTMENT 101 Course

Stock and Bond Market News

Barclays is cutting 3,700 jobs and scaling back investment banking in Europe and Asia

Captain Rick: This is a bid to clean up Barclay’s reputation and revive profits after a series of damaging scandals. The job cuts will be divided almost equally across its investment and retail banking operations, mainly in continental Europe and Asia. Barclays is also closing its structured capital markets unit, at one time its most profitable business, which focused exclusively on helping clients avoid taxes.
Barclays said it would focus on investment in the U.K., U.S. and Africa while retaining a smaller presence in Europe and Asia to support its global investment bank.

Unions kill another American Classic: Hostess, maker of Twinkies & Wonder Bread: Bankrupt … 18,500 workers lose their jobs

Captain Rick: Once upon a time in America, unions were an entity to protect job safety, like having clean air to breath and working with equipment that doesn’t maim or kill. In recent decades unions have become mostly about a means to push member benefits and wages as high as possible … historically, beyond justifiable means … at the expense of the consumer and their employer. All too many times we have witnessed massive job losses as the result of union greed. Detroit, once automotive headquarters and union central, is America’s greatest example. The city is all but dead, killed by the unions and their thirst for endless, unwarranted greed.

Hostess gave the unions a 5 PM deadline Thursday, November 15 to return to work. The workers did not return. As a result, the union workers killed Hostess, with annual sales of $2.5 billion. 18,500 workers have lost their jobs. 33 bakeries, 565 distribution centers and 570 outlet stores have closed across America. Annual sale of 500 million Twinkies and 127 million loaves of Wonder Bread also end. It’s the end of another American classic.

Hostess will move in bankruptcy court to sell its assets to the highest bidder. I trust the Twinkie and Wonder Bread will live on … but will be produced by companies  of dedicated workers who are not unionized … workers who understand the true value of their jobs … not some super hyped imagination of job glory that does not exist in today’s America. Thus, the companies might not be headquartered in America. Its time for all unions to exit America or America will continue to watch our great companies be washed to the sea.

DuPont to cut 1,500 jobs worldwide, 2% of its workforce … signaling another blow to the global economy

Captain Rick: DuPont, one of the world’s largest chemical companies that invented Nylon, Neoprene, Corian, Teflon, Mylar, Kevlar, Freon and much more issued a wake up call to the world today as it announced a cut of 1,500 jobs worldwide, about 2% of its global workforce. It also lowered earnings guidance for this year.

DuPont, headquartered in Wilmington, Delaware, had 70,000 employees worldwide at the end of last year. A component of the Dow Jones, DuPont’s stock fell 9% today, helping send the Dow into a nose dive today, loosing nearly 2% of its value.

Dow Dives 243 points, 1.82% … following slew of disappointing earnings … igniting fear that the global economy is on shakier ground than previously expected

Captain Rick: Big sell off on Wall Street as a result of three major U.S. industrial companies filing disappointing earnings reports, igniting fears that the global economy is on shakier ground than previously expected. DuPont, a Dow component fell 9% after reporting weaker-than-expected quarterly earnings and announced plans to cut 1500 jobs worldwide. United Technologies lowered its forecast and 3M missed revenue estimates. Continuing uncertainty about economic health in Europe and China contributed. This was the biggest Dow dive since June.

In September, 2012, the Dow came within 4% of the all time Dow high of 14164.53 reached before the 2008 market crash. This correction knocks it back to –7.5% from the all time high. The Dow is still up 7.24% for 2012.

I see lots of uncertainty lying ahead with the U.S. facing the “Fiscal Cliff” in January, the fiscal problems in Europe and the degrading effect that all of it is having on the economy of China, which are all working in unison as ingredients brewing a very volatile global fiscal and economic storm. I will do my best to report the important elements.

Cummins to cut 1,500 jobs by end of 2012 due to weakening global economy

Captain Rick: Cummins, the world’s largest producer of diesel technology with $1.85 billion in 2011 sales,  announced that it will cut as many as 1,500 jobs by the end of 2012 because of uncertainty regarding the direction of the global economy. Cummins employs about 44,000 people worldwide. Based in Indiana, it also has factories in Minnesota, New Mexico, North Carolina and several overseas. It instituted a global hiring freeze after a recent drop in sales in North America, China and Brazil.