What a turkey!

What a turkey!Yes, it's time for the first annual business page What a turkey! awards, given with gratitude and humility -- and plenty more from where they came.louis vuitton handbags Some late entries this year are vying for attention. Certainly, Hewlett-Packard's $11.1 billion purchase of software company Autonomy Corp. that recently prompted a write down of $8.louis vuitton bags for sale8 billion has got enough giblets to earn an award.HP said an Autonomy executive with impeccable timing stepped forward soon after the deal was closed to reveal HP had been taken for a ride. HP now says it is the victim of crooked accounting, which got by two respectable accounting firms that reviewed the acquisition, Deloitte, which reviewed the deal and KPMG, which reviewed Deloitte's report.HP Chief Executive Officer Meg Whitman, who succeeded fired CEO Leo Apotheker, who orchestrated the deal -- winner of a hindsight What a turkey! award -- said forensic accountants had been working through the books since soon after the deal was clinched and that the bogus numbers were designed to be hard to find.louis vuitton speedyAnother late entry is billionaire investor Steven Cohen, who here shall be called "Portfolio Manager A," which is the code name assigned to him in an insider trading complaint unsealed Tuesday.Speaking of $8.8 billion, that's what Forbes Magazine estimates Cohen is worth in its latest list of the country's richest men. Cohen ranked 40th.louis vuitton parisA Securities and Exchange Commission report alleges Cohen directed trades at SAC Capital Advisors based on a long-standing, $1,000 per hour relationship with a neurology professor who had the inside dope on development of Alzheimer's disease treatment that was being studied.If found guilty, Cohen would be the second billionaire in recent memory after Galleon Group founder Raj Rajaratnam -- now serving an 11-year sentence -- for whom billions just wasn't good enough. There are no rules for What a turkey! awards, but if there was one -- well, let's put it this way: Losing $2.3 billion on behalf of your employer and you're a shoe-in.louis vuitton epiThat said, rogue UBS trader Kewku Adoboli can pick up his award anytime. Using the same criteria, former governor of New Jersey Jon Corzine, the head of MF Global when it misplaced $1.2 billion of its client's funds, is to be honored this year. JPMorgan Chase Chief Executive Officer James Dimon can claim an award on behalf of the derivatives trading unit that lost $6.louis vuitton monogram vernis2 billion in the first nine months of 2012.By the by, a neurology professor who takes $1,000 per hour as the linchpin behind a deal that netted SAC Capital an alleged $276 million does not get an award, given the heavy hitting candidates this year. But he does qualify for a Missed the Boat Award. And he has to eat in the kitchen.handbags newIn international markets the Nikkei 225 index in Japan rose 0.87 percent, while the Shanghai composite index in China gained 1.07 percent. The Hang Seng index in Hong Kong added 1.lv handbag39 percent, while the Sensex in India added 0.72 percent.The S&P/ASX 200 in Australia slipped 0.37 percent.louis vuitton epiIn midday trading in Europe, the FTSE 100 index in Britain and the DAX 30 in Germany each climbed 0.13 percent. The CAC 40 in France was up 0.38 percent, while the Stoxx Europe 600 gained 0.replica louis vuitton wallet23 percent.
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Consumers say 'Show me the bargains'

CHICAGO, Nov.gucci messenger bag 22 (UPI) -- U.S. consumers say the deals had better be good if retailers want them to spend their money this weekend.This is the earliest Thanksgiving since 2007, giving consumers plenty of time to get their shopping done before Christmas and Black Friday deals are designed to get consumers in the spending mood.louis vuitton online storeA Black Friday shopping survey by the National Retail Federation says as many as 147 million people plan to shop this weekend, down from the 152 million who planned to do so last year. While 71 million said they definitely planned to shop, 76 million others said they would wait and see what retailers had in-store."Though the Black Friday tradition is here to stay, there's no question that it has changed in recent years," NRF President and Chief Executive Officer Matthew Shay said in a statement. "It's critical for retail companies to constantly evolve as consumers do, and right now shoppers want great deals, good value, and convenience -- exactly what we're seeing with this season's late and early openings, price-matching, layaway and mobile offerings.gucci messenger bag"Nearly half of shoppers say they keep up with advertising circulars throughout the holiday and more than 30 percent say they watch for television ads. A growing number of U.S. shoppers are keeping track online.handbags new The NRF said nearly 27 percent will follow retailers' websites and 31 percent will track emails from retailers to get the latest holiday announcements."The days of waking up Thanksgiving morning to find out what retailers' Black Friday promotions will be has transitioned into an ongoing dialogue between companies and their customers starting days in advance," BIGinsight Consumer Insights Director Pam Goodfellow said. "Through sites like Twitter, Facebook and Pinterest, company blogs, emails and mobile apps, consumers can connect with their favorite retailers like never before."Discover says consumers plan to spend more this holiday season than last year, as long as retailers are offering good deals.handbags and wallets The 2012 Discover Annual Holiday Shopping Survey suggests spending will jump to an average of $838 this year, up from $748 in 2011.Half of consumers say they plan to spend about the same as they did in 2011, and 23 percent plan to spend more this year. Forty-two percent say retailers' sales and promotions will most influence their holiday spending.The Discover survey suggests 46 percent of shoppers plan to spend $100 to $500, 26 percent, say they plan to spend $500 to $1,000 and 14 percent say they plan to spend $1,000 to $5,000.replica louis vuitton walletConsumers are looking for good deals online, as well as incentives such as free shipping. Discover said 75 percent of consumers plan to shop around online for better prices."When asked to choose from the following five online deals they are looking for, shoppers ranked free shipping first with 79 percent, followed by exclusive sales and offers, coupon codes, early access to sales and Facebook-exclusive promotions," Discover said.Retailers are expecting to see a boost in mobile shopping this year.louis vuitton monogram The NRF said nearly 53 percent of those who own smartphones and nearly two-thirds of those who own tablets plan to use their devices to research and purchase holiday gifts, food and decor.Walmart is providing special perks to customers who "like" their Facebook page or download Walmart's mobile app, offering early access to specials and information, the company said.The Walmart app allows customers to use the "in-store mode" on their smart phones to view local ads, access local store pricing and see the aisle location of products carried in that specific store.Cyber Monday is a growing trend among shoppers looking to take advantage of special online deals that can save them the hassle of heading out to the shopping mall.lv handbagForty-one percent of respondents to the PriceGrabber.com's third winter holiday shopping survey said they planned to shop on Cyber Monday, up from 37 percent last year and 33 percent in 2010. The online shoppers said they wanted to take advantage of one-day deals, discounts and free-shipping offers.While Cyber Monday is often associated with employees returning to the office after the Thanksgiving weekend only to spend most of their time browsing for holiday deals online, PriceGrabber's survey suggests 83 percent of people planned to do their Cyber Monday shopping from home.louis vuitton handbagRojeh Avanesian, vice president of marketing and analytics for PriceGrabber.com, said clothing and consumer electronics are expected to be the top gift purchases on Cyber Monday. Plans by Target, Sears and Walmart to get a jump on Black Friday by opening stores Thursday night have sparked fears of employee and consumer backlash."Retailers are under immense pressure to get the holiday shopping season off to a strong start," John A.louis vuitton wallet for sale Challenger, chief executive officer of global outplacement firm Challenger, Gray & Christmas said in the firm's holiday shopping outlook. "As big box chains face growing competition from discounters like Target and Walmart, not to mention the fierce competition from online retailers like Amazon.com, they are all compelled to find whatever edge they can to get shoppers into their stores," Challenger warned, however, retailers are taking a risk by being open on a day set aside for giving thanks."Not only is there the risk of creating disgruntled workers, who feel they have no choice but to accept the holiday hours in this economy, but in the wake of the worst recession since the Great Depression, some Americans have soured on the corporate excess and the profits-at-any-cost mentality that some say helped hasten the economic meltdown," Challenger said.louis vuitton shop onlineHowever, he said, it is not as if no one works on Thanksgiving."You can't close hospitals or fire departments," he said. "Grocery stores provide essential last-minute Thanksgiving meal items, but also baby formula, medicine and other products that should be obtainable every day of the year. Some would even argue that the NFL provides a necessary service in the form of family entertainment and bonding.chanel bags online However, it would be difficult to argue that the need to buy a deeply discounted DVD player or LCD television cannot wait another eight to 10 hours."The NRF 2012 holiday spending survey of 9,383 consumers was conducted by BIGinsight Nov. 1-6. The margin of error is 1 percentage point.louis vuitton purse for sale The Discover survey of 506 male and 497 female adults was conducted by Penn Schoen Berland Oct. 26-30.
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Budget talk blues

Budget talks in Washington are threatening to put stock markets on a short leash, much as painfully slow bailout talks in Europe have in recent years.louis vuitton monogramIt took so long for European leaders to agree on a program for bailing out Greece that by the time the first loans were approved the funds sent to Athens went to help a budget mess that nobody could recognize anymore.Europe began assembling the second rescue program before the first was played out and studied, in part because the long delays had allowed the Greek economy to contract even further, such that few of the decimal points appeared to be in the right place anymore.All those headlines that pronounced Germany willing to help were, by then, stretched so thin that Chancellor Angela Merkel's optimism was embarrassing the country's less optimistic finance minister. In time they began to sound like they came from different countries, let alone work in the same administration.lv handbagThe White House has now issued a new report that warns the so-called "fiscal cliff," if it comes around, will be responsible for a 1.4 percent drop in the country's economic growth, which is hovering near 2 percent as it is.After stock values took a sharp post-election dive, economists are now linking worries about the potential budget implosion to the health of retail during the holiday shopping season, which means concern has shifted to include consumers, as well as investors.Of course, manufacturers are also looking over their shoulders, wondering if it is worth it to stick with production schedules, given gridlock in Washington threatens to cripple the economy.louis vuitton wallet for saleIt is not news the budget plan almost everybody fears is deemed an economic threat. But the Congressional Budget Office's numbers are slightly higher than previous predictions. At this point, the combined spending cuts and tax hikes in place are expected to send the unemployment rate to 9.1 percent by the end of 2013, The New York Times reported.louis vuitton speedyThere are cloudy days and then there are rainy days. In between, there are dry days with thunder rumbling on the horizon. Investors, consumers and manufacturers like to know what to expect. In the meantime, the media is wondering if statements of cooperation made after the first meetings between Republicans and the White House after the election can stretch to week three without any holes appearing.louis vuitton monogram There's a humorous sentiment that goes, "Don't vote -- it only encourages them." In this vein, even negative press is press of some kind and the people who go into delirium tremens without seeing their names in the newspaper for two days might best serve their collective mission if the press would just pay attention to something else. Someone is feeding on negative press -- voraciously, apparently. In international markets Monday, the Nikkei 225 index in Japan added 1.handbags and wallets8 percent while the Shanghai composite index in China fell 0.49 percent. The Hang Seng index in Hong Kong rose 0.55 percent while the Sensex in India added 0.louis vuitton belt16 percent.The S&P/ASX 200 in Australia gained 0.25 percent.In midday trading in Europe, the FTSE 100 index in Britain shed 0.louis vuitton purse52 percent while the DAX 30 in Germany lost 0.28 percent. The CAC 40 in France slipped 0.75 percent while the Stoxx Europe 600 gave up 0.louis vuitton speedy48 percent.
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What works around here?

Finance leaders in Europe are haggling once again over the rescue of Greece with three basic scenarios available.lv handbagCompromising aside, one outcome includes creditors accepting losses. That means German taxpayers, who have been fairly disagreeable about rescuing Greece in the first place, will be asked to take a hit. This puts German Chancellor Angela Merkel in a difficult spot given she is up for re-election in 2013.Option two is to relax targets that the international community has imposed on Athens as mandated criterion for the bailout disbursements to continue.chanel handbags The International Monetary Fund is against the wall on this point. Their bylaws prohibit loans to countries that cannot sustain their debt, The New York Times reported.Greece is way off the mark. Greek debt is estimated at 175 percent of its gross domestic product and is expected, if the economy doesn't turn around, to reach 200 percent by 2014.chanel bags onlineUnemployment in Greece is near 25 percent and the economy has shrunk about 20 percent in the past three years. Further, the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development predicted as of Tuesday that economic expansion among its 34 members would slow to a trickle in 2013. From a estimate six months ago of 2.2 percent, the OECD now says its members will see growth of 1.louis vuitton speedy4 percent next year.The third scenario, unbelievable as it sounds, is to provide Greece with larger loans.As laughable this sounds, currently, as Greece missed budget targets in June, about $57 billion could be sent to Athens from its present bailout package and a new bailout program -- which would be the third -- could also be put together.There really is a message behind all this, and that is the rescue of Greece simply did not work.louis vuitton speedyAt this point, the countries rescuing Greece include several prominent members of the OECD, the group that says its economic growth next year will be below acceptable, given 1.4 percent growth likely means unemployment will rise across the OECD.The OECD report calls the weak economies in the eurozone the "greatest threat to the world economy," at the present time. That means an organism that is the "greatest threat" to everyone else is already in trouble and trying to fix one of its weakest spots.louis vuitton wallet for sale It's good to know that Greece represents a relatively small hemorrhage, but it's less comforting to know that Spain, the fourth largest economy in the currency region, is also facing enormous difficulties. The third largest economy, Italy, watched its borrowing costs soar for much of 2012 and the second largest economy, France, just had its credit rating downgraded.It bears repeating: The rescue of Greece did not work. This brings us to the solution recommended by the OECD.gucci messenger bag Their report said, "Temporary fiscal stimulus should be provided by countries with robust fiscal positions."At the expense of sounding simple-minded, financial leaders in Europe have spent three years attempting to fix the Greek government's budget, paying no attention whatsoever to the country's economy, which has done steadily worse since the rescue efforts began three years ago.Is there a turnaround artist out there, that could give Greece a new logo, a new color scheme, a new advertising jingle? That all sounds ridiculous, but it isn't meant to be. If Greece had new owners they would start by saying, "Look at all this potential -- there and there.louis vuitton purse" They would start with what works. In international markets Tuesday, the Nikkei 225 index in Japan added 0.37 percent, while the Shanghai composite index in China fell 1.3 percent.gucci messenger bag The Hang Seng index in Hong Kong was off 0.08 percent, while the Sensex in India gained 1.65 percent.The S&P/ASX 200 in Australia rose 0.louis vuitton purse74 percent.In midday trading in Europe, the FTSE 100 index in Britain added 0.18 percent, while the DAX 30 in Germany gained 0.27 percent.louis vuitton monogram The CAC 40 in France slipped 0.12 percent, while the Stoxx Europe 600 gained 0.22 percent.
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