MORNING BRIEFS

Asian markets climb on improved outlook in China, Hong Kong
Asian-Pacific markets rose Monday, with Australian stocks spurred by Axa Asia Pacific's rejection of a takeover bid. Australia's S&P/ASX 200 gained 1.8%, while Japan's Nikkei 225 and New Zealand's NZX 50 inched up 0.2%. South Korea's Kospi Composite increased 0.3%, Hong Kong's Hang Seng Index improved 1.7%, China's Shanghai Composite added 0.4% and Taiwan's Taiex climbed 1%. The Wall Street Journal (09 Nov.)

*don't count on the senate doing much of anything except bloviating on how much we need healthcare but can't afford it blah blah blah. Reid is already in a tough reelection fight in Nevada and has said that this will not get solved before 2010. Two pubbys win against INCUMBENTS and jackass' go running for cover. Give me the same plan that these scheisters get or don't give me any plan at all!Obama urges swift approval of Senate's health care bill
Only 14 hours after the House narrowly approved its health care bill, U.S. President Barack Obama called on the Senate to act quickly and enact its version. He called the House's action a "courageous vote." Obama's health care plan could face an even tougher fight in the Senate, in which Majority Leader Harry Reid, D-Nev., wants a vote before Thanksgiving. Senate Democrats are struggling to hang onto votes from 58 Democrats and two independents, needed to shut down a threatened Republican filibuster. One independent, Sen. Joe Lieberman of Connecticut, said he will vote against any plan that would provide government-run insurance. The Politico (Washington) (08 Nov.)

*except for himself of course and this is the thanks we all get for Obama picking him to lead the financial crisis. He should just quit now and take Summers with him.
Geithner fails to spur bank lending in U.S.
Commercial and industrial lending in the U.S. has dropped 17% since October 2008, according to the Federal Reserve. Efforts by Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner to incite banks to lend more seem to have had little effect. Analysts see this as a significant threat to economic growth. The lack of bank lending is "a serious problem," said Jan Hatzius, chief U.S. economist at Goldman Sachs. "This could keep growth significantly weaker than the consensus view in 2010 and is likely to keep the Federal Reserve at a near-zero-percent funds rate all next year." Bloomberg (08 Nov.)

*of course its true for the big players, they take care of each other first, the the wall of blue fat cat wall streeters, but try telling that to the backbone of this country, the regular ordinary americans who work so hard and have gotten so little in return.
Berkshire Hathaway: The credit crunch has eased
Warren Buffett's Berkshire Hathaway earned $3.24 billion in the third quarter, up from $1.06 billion for the same period last year. Buffett last week announced that his company would buy a controlling interest in railway firm Burlington Northern Santa Fe for $26 billion, and would take on $8 billion in debt to do so. "If he were still worried about credit markets, he wouldn't be doing this. It does say something for this guy to put that much money on a bet on the U.S. economy," said Jeff Matthews, author of "Pilgrimage to Warren Buffett's Omaha." Bloomberg (11/9)

*in case you were wondering the financial shape of GE, this should give you a clue: They are in very bad shape. They are about to sell a huge money maker for them simply because they are in dire need of cash. Ijiots.
Sources: Comcast, GE set NBC Universal's value at about $30BComcast moved closer to buying a 51% equity stake in an entity that would own General Electric's NBC Universal with an agreement between the companies to value the unit at about $30 billion, sources said. The purchase would give Comcast opportunities to buy cable programming, an objective that CEO Brian Roberts said is a priority for acquisitions. France's Vivendi holds an annual option to sell its 20% stake in NBC Universal between Nov. 15 and Dec. 10 but said it is in "no hurry" to exercise the option. The Washington Post/Reuters (09 Nov.)

*yeah just like the unemployment figures. They actually use dead people in their calculations. True, you can't make this stuff up.
Economists say U.S. GDP is miscalculated
The calculation of U.S. GDP is not correct, a group of economists said. Imports priced at their point of origin at a certain amount are being accounted for at U.S. prices when GDP is calculated. The problem appears to have swelled GDP reporting, the economists said. While last quarter's GDP was reported at an annual growth rate of 3.5%, the number was actually 3.3%, they said. The New York Times (08 Nov.)

*does that mean AIG and american insurers as well?
Outlook for European insurers is dim
Impressive third-quarter results at European insurers were an exception, analysts said, and the outlook for the companies is not bright. Insurers' earnings increased on good return on investment, and the firms were not hit by major natural disasters. But these sources of earnings are not necessarily repeatable, analysts warned, and premium generation must provide the most income. However, there is no indication that premium generation will increase, analysts said. The Wall Street Journal/Dow Jones Newswires (09 Nov.)