Obama Strikes Softer Note With Wall Street

President Obama took a more conciliatory stance toward the financial sector in an interview with Bloomberg BusinessWeek, saying he did not “begrudge people success or wealth,” as it was “part of the free-market system.”

The president’s comments come days after the chief executives of JPMorgan Chase and Goldman Sachs received multimillion-dollar bonuses. But during the interview in the Oval office, he pointed out that “there are some baseball players who are making more than that and don’t get to the World Series either, so I’m shocked by that as well.”

Wall Street banks have been pulling their support for Democrats as they come under fire for their role in causing the financial crisis, as well as the huge payouts they make even as the rest of the United States continues to struggle with a sluggish economy and high unemployment.

While Jamie Dimon and Lloyd Blankfein have made gestures of cooperation as Congress looks at the bank practices that preceded the financial crash of 2008, the banking sector as a whole has poured money into fighting efforts to overhaul the system and increase regulation, bringing the chief reform bill to a standstill.

The president said, however, that the fact that Mr. Dimon and Mr. Blankfein took their bonuses in stock instead of cash was an improvement over the way bankers are often paid. He told Bloomberg BusinessWeek that that was a “fairer way of measuring C.E.O. success and ultimately will make the performance of American businesses better.”

China to Sell U.S. Assets

Something big is happening in China which could have a huge effect on the American economy.

On Tuesday, Reuters reported:

Senior Chinese military officers have proposed that their country ... possibly sell some U.S. bonds to punish Washington for its latest round of arms sales to Taiwan.

Now, Asia Times is reporting:

Dollar-denominated risk assets, including asset-backed securities and corporates, are no longer wanted at the State Administration of Foreign Exchange (SAFE), nor at China’s large commercial banks. The Chinese government has ordered its reserve managers to divest itself of riskier securities and hold only Treasuries and US agency debt with an implicit or explicit government guarantee. This already has been communicated to American securities dealers, according to market participants with direct knowledge of the events.

It is not clear whether China’s motive is simple risk aversion in the wake of a sharp widening of corporate and mortgage spreads during the past two weeks, or whether there also is a political dimension. With the expected termination of the Federal Reserve’s special facility to purchase mortgage-backed securities next month, some asset-backed spreads already have blown out, and the Chinese institutions may simply be trying to get out of the way of a widening. There is some speculation that China’s action has to do with the recent deterioration of US-Chinese relations over arm sales to Taiwan and other issues. That would be an unusual action for the Chinese to take–Beijing does not mix investment and strategic policy–and would be hard to substantiate in any event.

As Alphaville's Tracy Alloway writes:

In terms of overall holdings of US securities, Standard Chartered estimates the country had about $1.44 trillion at the end of August ($34bn more than official data):

Nevertheless, China still needs US debt to help offset its massive FX reserves — which it continues to build. We doubt it has yet found a better place than the US market to recycle its currency inflows. And until there’s concrete evidence of net-selling of Treasuries, threatening to sell US debt remains simple sabre-rattling over American finances.

It does, however, say something about the wider (delicate) Chinese-US relationship.

***

Update: The European FX analysts at BNP Paribas seem to have confirmed the SAFE report:

Dollar-denominated risk assets, including asset- backed securities and corporate, are no longer wanted at the State Administration of Foreign Exchange (SAFE), nor at China’s large commercial banks. The Chinese government has ordered its reserve managers to divest themselves of riskier securities and hold only Treasuries and US agency debt with an implicit or explicit government guarantee. This already has been communicated to American securities dealers, according to market participants with direct knowledge of the events. Meanwhile, the Chinese military has urged the government to sell US bonds, boosting defence spending on Taiwan arms deal. Hence, we watch US spreads intensively. A widening of spreads would not bold well for share markets while putting economic recovery at risk. It was US liquidity feeding financial markets until January this year. Hence a decline of risk appetite suggests repatriation flows moving back into the USD.

And see this.

State to delay tax refunds

Individual and corporate tax refunds to Hawaii residents will be delayed until July 1 as a result of the state's $721 million budget shortfall, the state Tax Department said today.

The action complies with the legally allowed 90-day refund period, according to a news release from the department.

Delaying the refunds will provide an estimated one-time savings of $275 million, which will go toward balancing the budget, according to the release.

The Tax Department said it will release refunds beginning July 1 on a first-in-first-out basis.

"This process will ensure that early filers will receive their refunds first," according to the release.

US trade deficit widens to 40.2 billion dollars

The US trade deficit widened sharply in December to 40.2 billion dollars, capping a year that saw a massive drop in the trade gap, government data showed Wednesday.

The Commerce Department reported total US exports of goods and services of 142.7 billion dollars and total imports of 182.9 billion dollars.

The trade gap mushroomed to 40.2 billion dollars after a revised 36.4 billion dollars in November.

For the full year, the US trade imbalance with the rest of the world improved impressively.

The 2009 trade gap amounted to 380.7 billion dollars, a decline of 45 percent from 2008, the official data showed.

In December, US exports rose 4.6 billion dollars from the prior month, while imports were up 8.4 billion dollars.

The goods deficit led the widening of the trade deficit, rising 3.4 billion from November to 51.8 billion dollars. The services surplus slipped 0.4 billion dollars to 11.7 billion dollars.

Exports of goods rose to 99.1 billion dollars, an increase of 4.6 billion dollars from November. Goods imports climbed a hefty 8.1 billion dollars to 150.9 billion dollars.

Exports of services were "virtually unchanged" at 43.6 billion dollars, and imports of services increased 0.3 billion dollars to 31.9 billion dollars, the department said.

Obama Still Doesn't Get It

Bloomberg today reports President Obama as commenting on the $17 million bonus for Jamie Dimon of JP Morgan Chase and the $9 million bonus for Lloyd Blankfein of Goldman Sachs,

I know both those guys; they are very savvy businessmen,

and

I, like most of the American people, don't begrudge people success or wealth. That is part of the free- market system.

Taken separately, these statements are undeniably true. But put them together in the context of the Bloomberg story - we have to wait until Friday for the full text of the interview - and the White House has a major public relations disaster on its hands. [UPDATE: See the complete transcript and video below.]

Does the president truly not understand that Dimon and Blankfein run banks that are regarded by policymakers and hence by credit markets as "too big to fail"?

This is the antithesis of a free-market system. Not only were their banks saved by government action in 2008-09 but the overly generous nature of this bailout (details here) means that the playing field is now massively tilted in favor of these banks. (I put this to Gerry Corrigan of Goldman and Barry Zubrow of JP Morgan when we appeared before the Senate Banking Committee last week; there was no effective rejoinder.)

Not only that, but the incentives for the people running these megabanks is now to take on reckless amounts of risk. They get the upside (for example, in these compensation packages) and - when the downside materializes - this belongs to taxpayers and everyone who loses a job. (See my testimony to the Senate Budget Committee yesterday; there was no disagreement among the witnesses or even across the aisle between Senators on this point.)

Being nice to the biggest banks will not save the midterm elections for the Democrats. The banks' campaign contributions will flow increasingly to the Republicans and against any Democrats (and there are precious few) who have fought for real reform.

The president's only political chance is to take on the too big to fail banks directly and clearly. He needs to explain where they came from (answer: the Reagan Revolution, gone wrong), how the problem became much worse during the last administration, and how - in credible detail - he will end their reign.

What we have now is not a free market. It is rather one of the most complete (and awful) instances ever of savvy businessmen capturing a state and the minds of the people who run it. Is this really what the president seeks to endorse?

* * * *

The transcript of Obama's exchange on bonuses:

Q Let's talk bonuses for a minute: Lloyd Blankfein, $9 million; Jamie Dimon, $17 million. Now, granted, those were in stock and less than what some had expected. But are those numbers okay?

THE PRESIDENT: Well, look, first of all, I know both those guys. They're very savvy businessmen. And I, like most of the American people, don't begrudge people success or wealth. That's part of the free market system. I do think that the compensation packages that we've seen over the last decade at least have not matched up always to performance. I think that shareholders oftentimes have not had any significant say in the pay structures for CEOs.

Q Seventeen million dollars is a lot for Main Street to stomach.

THE PRESIDENT: Listen, $17 million is an extraordinary amount of money. Of course, there are some baseball players who are making more than that who don't get to the World Series either. So I'm shocked by that as well. I guess the main principle we want to promote is a simple principle of "say on pay," that shareholders have a chance to actually scrutinize what CEOs are getting paid. And I think that serves as a restraint and helps align performance with pay. The other thing we do think is the more that pay comes in the form of stock that requires proven performance over a certain period of time as opposed to quarterly earnings is a fairer way of measuring CEOs' success and ultimately will make the performance of American businesses better.

Banks facing commercial property meltdown

At the height of the property boom in 2006, Shrewsbury's shopping centre was sold for £118m with only six of its 135 units lying empty.

Shrewsbury's shopping centre was sold for a greatly reduced price

The value of shopping centres had soared as money poured into commercial property.

Four years and one slump later, 29 units are empty in Shrewsbury's centre which was sold last month at a price believed to be half of the 2006 figure.

All over the UK, negative equity is now widespread in the whole of the commercial property sector - one informed estimate says it could be as much as £50bn.

In the case of shopping centres, it is now common for centres to be worth less than the cash loaned by banks to allow the owners to buy them during the boom.

"£10bn worth of shopping centres are capable of being put into receivership, should the banks so wish," said Mark Williams, of consultancy DTZ, who charts the buying and selling of shopping centres for BCSC (British Council of Shopping Centres).

He added: "That is one in five shopping centres in the UK.

"I'll stress we don't think the banks will put that volume into receivership."

'Scooby loans'

According to property consultant Andy Lamb, negative equity loans are so prevalent there is even a brand new jargon term in the business, the 'Scooby loan'.

Mr Lamb said such loans refer to companies who re-financed their loans when the market rose but found themselves in negative equity when it fell.

"The income is just about servicing the debt....the loan and the loan values are completely underwater and that is called a scooby loan," he said.

"What it means is a scuba diver i.e. he's underwater but he's still breathing, just!

"Because he can meet the interest payments, all other banking criteria are shot to pieces."

William Newsom of property consultancy Savills has been trying to estimate how much negative equity there is in British commercial bank loans.

Basing his research on six monthly data compiled by DeMontfort University Leicester, Mr Newsom estimates a figure of £38bn worth of negative equity on investment properties. But this could rise to £50bn if the drop in land values on development property is considered.

"It is enormous," he said, "but it could be significantly more."

"It has never been seen before to this order of magnitude. It is 25% of the entire lending book in round terms."

Concealing losses

Such losses would devastate the balance sheets of the banks who offered the loans, according to Mr Newsom, who says banks are doing all they can to help under-pressure borrowers keep afloat.

The alternative is that if the company goes bust, the losses on the loans will turn up on the bank's accounts.

"There a lot of banks out there who are burying their heads in the sand and not admitting the extent of the problems that they have, for obvious reasons," said Mr Newsom.

The could be up to £50bn worth of negative equity in the sector

But the British Bankers' Association rejects claims bankers are hiding their losses.

"UK banks are subject to one of the most open and robust accounting regimes in the world and the full extent of their liabilities is open for everyone to see when they publish their accounts annually."

The association added: "Banks make commercial decisions about the loans they grant and the repayment terms they impose. They lend based on the ability to repay.

"For large scale commercial property deals terms and conditions are individually negotiated and unique to that project."

Forced sales

Banks have been renegotiating loan terms and extending loan periods hoping that the problems would be resolved in what is known as "extend, amend and pretend" or "delay and pray".

Conor Downey, a specialist banking and commercial property lawyer with city firm Paul Hastings said not all loans could easily be extended.

During the boom a large number of so-called securitised loans were issued for property investors, and he said they were far less flexible.

He warned that a spate of forced sales was likely when these complex loans mature in the next two years.

"It is estimated there are 150 of these transactions across Europe, and about half are British.

"Each one runs to hundreds of millions of pounds in some cases billions," he said.

He said securitisations accounted for between 15 and 25% of all property lending at the peak of the market.

As the number of these forced sales grows this will further depress prices in the commercial property sector making it harder for banks to cover their losses, squeezing the cash they have available to lend to businesses.

'Duff' debts

"Banks are required by government to maintain certain amounts of cash....to protect them against the risk that a very large amount of their investments go bad.

"As these loans go bad the amount of capital they have available to the banks will decrease unless they can raise it again on the markets to in the long term it will reduce the ability of banks to make loans at the same levels as they have historically," said Mr Downey.

Economist Roger Bootle said banks were in a double bind, "I think it looks pretty bad whatever they do."

He added, "I don't think there is any way the government can dig the banking sector out of the difficulties with regard to commercial property whatever happens.

"There have been some pretty duff loans, the banks are going to register some pretty nasty losses and it's not really a big surprise because it was a massive boom stroke bubble and someone's got to pick up the tab."

Hawaii may delay payments to Quest health plan

Insurers, providers warn that cash flow problems may affect access to care

The state Department of Human Services has warned health insurance companies that the state may not make payments for Quest — the state's health plan for low-income families — for the last quarter of the fiscal year, leaving insurers to absorb about $300 million in medical expenses until at least July.

The potential delay in payments has stunned insurers and alarmed health care providers, who worry a delay could jeopardize the ability of insurers to cover claims, which would cause cash flow problems and influence how some providers care for Quest members.

"That would be extremely frightening, because if the state isn't paying the plans, then the plans are not going to be paying all of the people who actually deliver the health care services," said Beth Giesting, the chief executive officer of the Hawai'i Primary Care Association, a nonprofit that represents community health centers.

"Of course, that provides a ripple all the way down. If the providers are not getting paid, many of them will not be able to provide the services to the most vulnerable people."

Lillian Koller, the director of the state Department of Human Services, did not return telephone calls left with her spokeswoman seeking comment. But she outlined the situation in January briefings before the Senate Ways and Means Committee and the House Finance Committee.

The department has an estimated $84 million shortfall for the fiscal year that ends in June. Quest — the state's version of Medicaid — is funded with federal and state money, with the federal government now covering about two-thirds of the cost.

The shortfall, however, could prevent the state from providing the matching funds necessary to draw down federal money, forcing the state to delay payments to insurers in April, May and June.

The state makes about $100 million in payments each month to five health insurance plans: Hawaii Medical Service Association, Kaiser Permanente and AlohaCare for Quest; and Ohana Health Plan and EverCare for Quest Expanded Access, the plan for the aged, blind and disabled.

The department asked insurers to float two months' worth of payments to get through the last fiscal year, and also delayed payments in December.

The department has said that one of the reasons insurers are required to have reserves is to ensure prompt payment to providers in the event of such delays.

Koller told lawmakers that the shortfall is primarily the result of an increase in enrollment in Quest, and an increase in reimbursements because the cost of medical care continues to rise.

Quest and Quest Expanded Access, which is for those with disabilities or over 65, cover about 245,000 people.

Cost containment

Koller said that the state should start to have a discussion about reducing the benefit package in Quest, which she said may be the only realistic way to contain costs over time.

Pushing payments forward until next fiscal year, and eventually catching up when state finances improve, is one of the tools the Lingle administration is using to manage through the state's budget crisis.

Gov. Linda Lingle has announced, for example, that the state will delay income tax refunds from April to July, which on paper saves $275 million this fiscal year.

Steve Van Ribbink, the executive vice president, chief financial officer and treasurer at HMSA, sent Koller a letter last week that warned that HMSA "cannot continue to provide access to quality care for the Quest members we serve without the funds to do so."

Van Ribbink said using the delayed payment strategy as a solution to the budget deficit is "illusory" since he believes it cannot be sustained even for a short period of time.

He said payment delays have already forced HMSA to borrow from credit lines and liquidate portions of its investment portfolio to continue uninterrupted payments to providers.

He described it as an "unfair burden" on HMSA and warned that further delays could lead the state's largest insurer to put off payments to providers, which would "place a substantial financial stress on many health care providers."

Jennifer Diesman, vice president of government relations at HMSA, said insurers have not been given any guarantees by the department that they would receive a lump-sum payment in July.

Diesman said the Department of Human Services is also projecting a deficit for the next fiscal year, which Koller put at $146.5 million in her testimony to lawmakers. "There is no clarity about when we would be paid back," she said.

George Greene, the president and chief executive officer of the Healthcare Association of Hawaii, a nonprofit that represents hospitals and long-term care providers, said the delayed payments could leave providers with more uncompensated health care.

Hospitals lost $78 million on Quest care last year, according to an Ernst & Young report.

"What you have here is the beginning of something that could crumble the system," Greene said. "Some of our smaller members that depend on Medicaid payments, they're not going to be able to make payroll, they're not going to be able to buy supplies.

"So as this continues, you really have a detrimental impact to not just the patients, but the providers and also the plans. The longer it goes on, we as an industry have to step back and take a look and say 'What should our positioning be and what should our next steps be?'

"Because at the end of the day, nonpayment, if it gets too lengthy, goes into impacting the quality of patient care."

State solutions

Insurers and providers have reached out to state lawmakers.

State Sen. Suzanne Chun Oakland, D-13th (Kalihi, Nu'uanu), the chairwoman of the Senate Human Services Committee, said one idea would be to tap the state's hurricane-relief fund to help cover a portion of the delayed payments.

But others privately believe that is unlikely, especially after Moody's Investors Service lowered Hawai'i's bond rating outlook last week to negative from stable, in part because of a lack of reserves.

"That's a lot of money to carry for this state. That will impact providers and, of course, the patients," Chun Oakland said of the potential payment delay.

Chun Oakland has a briefing scheduled on the issue later this month.

"We're very concerned about the impact on access to care, as well as the type of services that can be provided," said state Rep. Ryan Yamane, D-37th (Waipahu, Mililani), the chairman of the House Health Committee.

State Sen. Josh Green, D-3rd (Kohala, Kona, Ka'u), an emergency-room doctor, said the Department of Human Services should rethink its strategy.

"I have grave concerns about the impact this DHS decision may have on health care in Hawai'i, specifically on physician care, hospitals and long-term care facilities statewide," he said.

"Worst still, this will profoundly affect access to care for our children. We need DHS to rethink this decision."

According to the Hawai'i Primary Care Association, 41 percent of all patients seen at community health centers in 2008 were covered by Quest.

Darrin Sato, the chief operations officer at Kalihi-Palama Health Center, said delayed payments could limit the ability of health centers to handle all the patients who need care, possibly forcing some to refer more patients to more costly hospital emergency room visits.

"We cannot continue to run as a business if we don't get paid," he said.

State Considers Medicaid Diaper Rations, No Gloves For Caretakers

CARSON CITY, Nev. — Nevada officials on Tuesday outlined drastic cuts to the state's Medicaid program that include plans to ration adult diapers, eliminate denture and hearing-aid programs, and force personal care assistants to buy their own disposable gloves.

State lawmakers learned of the cuts at a committee hearing in which health officials said adult day care programs, vision services and outpatient programs for people with brain trauma would also be cut to slash $109 million from Medicaid costs.

The grim proposals brought criticism and rebuke from lawmakers of both parties over Gov. Jim Gibbons' comments that Nevada can no longer pay for "bloated government services."

To close Nevada's $881 million budget deficit, Gibbons has proposed eliminating public school mandates for class size and full-day kindergarten, and suspending collective bargaining for teachers. Public schools would lose $166 million, and administrators say hundreds if not thousands of teachers could lose their jobs.

The governor also has proposed closing the 140-year-old Nevada State Prison in Carson City, a juvenile corrections facility in Las Vegas, and said 234 state workers would be laid off. More across-the-board salary reductions might be necessary, Gibbons said.

In his special State of the State speech Monday night, the first-term Republican governor who faces a June 8 primary blamed legislators for the state's budget crisis, saying "they gambled on new taxes and we all lost." He has told state agencies to plan for their budgets to be cut by 10 percent.

"The Legislature didn't cause this problem," Senate Minority Leader Bill Raggio, R-Reno, said during Tuesday's hearing before the Legislature's Interim Finance Committee. "We were able last session to delay some of this impact on the lives of a lot of Nevadans who really need some services."

He said it's a severe problem when legislators are "talking about reducing the number of diapers that incontinents will be able to get."

Assembly Speaker Barbara Buckley, D-Las Vegas, said lawmakers raised revenue last session to avoid such cuts.

"Cutting them off of dentures, hearing-aid services and diapers ... I don't know how we look the elderly in the eye," she said.

Most of the tax and fee increases approved in 2009 are scheduled to sunset at the end of the year.

Gibbons' spokesman Daniel Burns said in response that legislators "raised taxes and they raised spending."

The governor in his speech "was merely reviewing the facts that got Nevada's budget where it is today," he said. "But that is history."

Burns said the governor, legislators and citizens "must work together to keep Nevada afloat."

In Las Vegas, several hundred university students boycotted classes Tuesday to rally against plans for deep cuts to funding for Nevada colleges. Higher education officials have said the proposed cuts of $147 million could force them to close colleges and campuses, lay off staff and increase tuition.

Many boarded buses and carpooled to the Grant Sawyer State Office Building, where they chanted "no more cuts" while the Finance Committee met inside.

Lawmakers are holding hearings before a special legislative session Feb. 23, when they will try to reconcile with Gibbons on how to balance the state's budget.

Mike Willden, state health and human services director, said the 10 percent cuts the governor is calling for would have totaled $132 million, but some measure were considered too onerous, so the administration reduced the agency's target reduction to $109 million.

Reducing the number of incontinence products that Medicaid will pay for to 186 from 300 per month will save $829,000 a year, the agency said. Eliminating reimbursements for disposable gloves can save $834,000.

About 4,400 people received dentures or had their dentures relined in 2009. Eliminating that benefit is projected to save $2.5 million. Ending adult day care, used by 367 Medicaid recipients last year, will save about $2.1 million.

Cutting reimbursement rates for personal care services by $1.50 per hour to $15.50 would save nearly $3 million, and reducing hospital reimbursement rates by 5 percent would save $5.3 million.

Willden said there are no easy answers.

"I'm giving you the best of the worst choices," he said.

He conceded that with proposed cuts so far totaling only half the state deficit, deeper cuts may be necessary.

Film studio firm wants tax credits

A Los Angeles company that wants to build a $109 million film studio in Kapolei that could provide 1,645 jobs and an $80 million annual payroll in an emerging Hawaii film industry is asking lawmakers for tax credits to help fund the project.

JAMM AQUINO / JAQUINO@STARBULLETIN.COM

Computer graphics supervisor Remington Scott looked at junior lighter Michael Holmes' screen yesterday at Hawaii Animation Studios in downtown Honolulu.

View Large Version >>

The proposed tax credits would also help other digital media companies that hire local workers and are located in yet-to-be-designated "enterprise subzones" near a University of Hawaii campus.

"This is about jobs, right here, right now, in Hawaii," Chris Lee, director of the Academy for Creative Media at UH, told two Senate committees last week.

The tax credits would help develop a film industry that would use the skills that UH and public high school students are learning in digital media production, Lee said.

But others say more students would benefit if the money spent on tax credits went instead to restoring furlough days at public schools.

"On the one hand we're thinking of raising taxes, and on the other hand we're tossing money out the window," said Lowell Kalapa, president of the Tax Foundation of Hawaii. "This is not free money. It's money out the back door."

Stephen Smith, president of SHM Partners, the company hoping to build the Kapolei Digital and Film Studios, said the company is considering partnering with UH-West Oahu and the Academy of Creative Media and locating the studio on UH land next to the campus.

"With all of the great digital media programs in the high schools in the area, it could be a natural sort of progress from high school to college," UH-West Oahu Chancellor Gene Awakuni said. "It provides a place for our students to get an internship in an industry with great-paying jobs."

Daniel Krech, president of Hawaii Animation Studios, said tax credits are among the reasons the company is in the state.

The company hopes to hire up to 150 local employees and has offered internships and jobs to UH students, Lee said.

Tax credits will help accelerate expansion plans and allow the company to hire locally rather than outsource some production, Krech said.

Lee pointed to New Mexico, which he said introduced tax incentives to the film industry in 2001, when Hollywood spent only $1.5 million there. By 2007, Lee said, New Mexico enjoyed $475 million in film industry spending.

But the Tax Department says while the bill might have merit, the state cannot afford to give out tax credits this year.

"Given the forecasted decrease in revenue projections, this measure would add to the budget shortfall," Tax Director Kurt Kawafuchi said in his testimony.

Kapolei Rep. Sharon Har, who introduced House Bill 2382, said the House economic revitalization and higher-education committees are working on amendments to the bill and will vote on it tomorrow. Senate Bill 2355 is scheduled for a hearing today.

"We look at Hawaii as being the next place for digital media," Har said. If the tax credits are in place, "we do believe the companies will come."

Ten Year Treasuries Nose Dive At Auction

Ten Year treasury yields hit 3.692% in today's auction, which was well above where the ten-year treasuries were trading going into the auction.

Zero Hedge: Yields 3.692% vs. Exp. 3.680%... Bid To Cover 2.67 vs. Avg. 2.78 (Prev. 3.00) Indirects 33.2% vs. Avg. 43.27% (Prev. 29.0%) ... Direct Take Down: Massive 13%

R_20100210_1

The Dumping Begins: Chinese Reserve Managers Notified That Any Non-USG Guaranteed Securities Must Be Divested

It appears that this time China’s posturing is for real. Following up on our earlier post that Chinese military officials want to “punish” America by selling Treasuries, Asia Times Online is reporting that an explicit directive by the Chinese government has notified reserve managers to sell all risky US assets, including asset backed and corporates, and just hold on to explicitly guaranteed Treasuries and Agency debt. And from following TIC data we know that China’s enthusiasm for MBS/Agencies over the past year has been matched solely by that of one Bill Gross.

From Asia Times:

Dollar-denominated risk assets, including asset-backed securities and corporates, are no longer wanted at the State Administration of Foreign Exchange (SAFE), nor at China’s large commercial banks. The Chinese government has ordered its reserve managers to divest itself of riskier securities and hold only Treasuries and US agency debt with an implicit or explicit government guarantee. This already has been communicated to American securities dealers, according to market participants with direct knowledge of the events.
It is not clear whether China’s motive is simple risk aversion in the wake of a sharp widening of corporate and mortgage spreads during the past two weeks, or whether there also is a political dimension. With the expected termination of the Federal Reserve’s special facility to purchase mortgage-backed securities next month, some asset-backed spreads already have blown out, and the Chinese institutions may simply be trying to get out of the way of a widening. There is some speculation that China’s action has to do with the recent deterioration of US-Chinese relations over arm sales to Taiwan and other issues. That would be an unusual action for the Chinese to take–Beijing does not mix investment and strategic policy–and would be hard to substantiate in any event.

Furthermore, demonstrating just how seriously China is approaching a populist-driven adversarial stance with the US, was earlier speculation that instead of unpegging its currency (a move much desired by the US administration in its goal to further weaken the dollar and make China less competitive in the export market), China would reduce its trade balance not by the traditional way of currency inflation, but by the economic textbook footnote approach of raising salaries.

Higher labor costs would cut Chinese export competitiveness while boosting domestic spending power and sustaining economic growth, according to the bank. Premier Wen Jiabao’s government has been pressed by U.S. and European officials to end a 19- month yuan peg to the dollar to help diminish trade and investment imbalances that contributed to the credit crisis.
“Wage increases are a better option because they largely benefit Chinese workers,” Tao Dong, a Credit Suisse economist in Hong Kong who has covered the Chinese and Asian economies for more than 15 years, said in an interview yesterday. “Currency appreciation will only result in Chinese exporters losing out to competitors in countries such as Malaysia and Mexico.”
The strategy may limit gains in the yuan to 3 percent this year, according to Tao. This month’s 13 percent increase in minimum wage in eastern China’s Jiangsu province indicates that higher pay will play an important role in officials’ efforts to rebalance growth in the fastest-growing major economy, Tao said.
The wage decision “argues against a large one-off yuan revaluation,” Ben Simpfendorfer, an economist with Royal Bank of Scotland in Hong Kong, wrote in a note this week.

One thing is certain – China will now focus on doing precisely the opposite of what America would urge Chinese authorities to do, in order to establish itself as the focal point of negotiating leverage and increasingly humiliate the Obama regime. If this involves selling USTs or corporates (both fixed income and equities) so be it. This is further confirmed by carefully worded disclosure in today’s copy of China Securities Journal:

The China Securities Journal, a government-backed daily, accused the U.S. in a tough-worded front page editorial of playing the “exchange rate card.”
It said that, just as China didn’t interfere with Federal Reserve purchases of U.S. Treasuries, “the U.S. has no right to interfere in China’s exchange rate policy.”
“Whether or not to appreciate is our own business,” the newspaper said.
“Whether it will appreciate, when and by how much is an integral part of China’s monetary policy.”

It is not clear when the asset divestiture directive takes place or if it is already being enforced. Juding by the afterhours action in futures and the currency markets, some dumping may already be taking place. Alternatively, we now know just who it is that sell into every rally (yes, even in this market, every buyer is matched with a seller).

Bankruptcy Bloodbath May Hit Muni Owners: Joe Mysak (Update1)

Feb. 10 (Bloomberg) -- Public officials shouldn’t think about filing for Chapter 9 municipal bankruptcy to solve mounting labor costs and pension liabilities.

Even talking about this action will invite an inquiry from Fitch Ratings, the company said in a report published Jan. 27.

“The more bankruptcy is publicly discussed as an option for financial relief, the more its tarnish wears off, increasing the likelihood of its actual use,” Fitch said.

The biggest financial crisis since the Great Depression is squeezing municipalities across the country. Since Vallejo, California, successfully petitioned for bankruptcy protection in May 2008, California’s towns, Detroit’s schools and Pennsylvania’s capital city of Harrisburg have all talked about Chapter 9.

That should make bondholders nervous because it “questions whether a local government’s labor contracts would be surgically undone with bondholders’ rights left intact,” Fitch said.

Or as John H. Knox, a partner with Orrick, Herrington & Sutcliffe in San Francisco, which is counsel to Vallejo in its bankruptcy, said in an interview: “Any plan is going to impair all classes of creditors, including bondholders.”

Share Losses

Vallejo, a city of 117,000 on San Francisco Bay, wants to roll back salary and benefits, cut services -- and reduce debt payments. “No interest would accrue for four years, and general fund principal and interest payments would be suspended for three years,” the city’s workout plan states.

This might save the municipality, or, depending upon your point of view, cost investors, $13.4 million.

Fitch is concerned that if Vallejo’s plan is approved, it may set a precedent. “At least some classes of bondholders must share in losses along with other creditors,” the rating company’s statement said.

Stiffing bondholders, even a little bit, would be unusual in the tax-exempt market, said James E. Spiotto, a partner at Chapman & Cutler in Chicago and a municipal bankruptcy specialist. That’s because most municipalities don’t go out of business in bankruptcy and need ready access to the credit market in order to borrow money. Reducing interest rates and extending repayment terms to bondholders are the usual strategies.

Hard Choices

Investors have long taken for granted municipalities’ ability and willingness to make bond payments. More Chapter 9 bankruptcies might force buyers to cast aside such assumptions. Public officials’ capacity to make unpopular decisions might become as important as the state of a community’s finances.

Local governments have been reluctant to reduce headcount during the recession. Since employment peaked at 115.6 million in December 2007, businesses have cut 8.5 million jobs, a 7.4 percent reduction. Local governments, by contrast, continued adding employees through September 2008, to a high of 14.6 million and have since fired 141,000 workers, or 0.96 percent, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.

“In most states, labor laws applicable to public employee contracts place numerous restrictions on revising labor agreements, even if the agreements are pushing the municipality toward bankruptcy,” Orrick’s Knox and colleague Marc Levinson wrote in “Municipal Bankruptcy: Avoiding and Using Chapter 9 in Times of Fiscal Stress,” a booklet published in 2009. “However, if all parties realize that failure to modify extant agreements would likely land the municipality in bankruptcy court, all parties should be willing to work very hard to achieve consensual modification of burdensome agreements.”

Rare Option

Chapter 9 bankruptcy is rare, according to the American Bankruptcy Institute in Alexandria, Virginia.

Only six occurred during the first three quarters of 2009, the latest period for which data is available. There were four in 2008. Since 1980, we’ve seen 227 instances, the peak year being 1991, with 18. Most have involved utilities or special districts, according to Spiotto, not cities or counties.

States can’t enter Chapter 9 bankruptcy, and 26 of them prohibit their municipalities from filing, according to Knox and Levinson. “A municipality in those states must seek enactment of a specific statute particular to it authorizing the filing. It goes without saying that a floundering municipality faces an uphill battle in such states.”

That hasn’t stopped municipalities from talking about it more than they have since 1994, when Orange County, California, suffered through the country’s biggest municipal bankruptcy. Bondholders have to worry if it’s more than just talk.

Below is the list of 26 states.

Alaska
Delaware
Georgia
Hawaii
Illinois
Indiana
Iowa
Kansas
Maine
Maryland
Massachusetts
Mississippi
Nevada
New Hampshire
New Mexico
North Dakota
Oregon
Rhode Island
South Dakota
Tennessee
Utah
Vermont
Virginia
West Virginia
Wisconsin
Wyoming

Hawaii gambling bills advance in House

A bill that could lead to casinos on Hawaiian Home Lands passed out of the state House Judiciary Committee, while a separate measure that would allow a single casino on O'ahu also advanced yesterday.

House Bill 2759 authorizes the state Department of Hawaiian Home Lands to allow gaming casinos on Hawaiian Homes parcels as it deems necessary. That bill moved out of the Judiciary Committee yesterday after lengthy testimony.

Another measure, House Bill 2251, would allow for creation of a gaming commission that would issue a single five-year license to a casino operator on O'ahu. That bill received the second of three votes in the House yesterday, although a sizeable number of representatives voted no.

House Judiciary chairman Jon Riki Karamatsu, who wrote the single-casino measure, said the state's economic budget woes warrant a closer look at gambling proposals.

The Democratic leadership in the House has encouraged keeping a gaming bill alive as an alternative to raising taxes, Karamatsu said. "I'm just trying to keep the options open as far as revenue generation for the state," he said.

The Hawaiian Homes casino bill advanced out of the Judiciary Committee despite continued opposition from Hawaiian Homes Commission chairman Kaulana Park and a host of others, including Honolulu Prosecutor Peter Carlisle.

House Hawaiian Affairs chairwoman Mele Carroll, the bill's lead author, said the bill would help DHHL maintain a steady source of income, noting that an annual $30 million distribution for the state's use of Hawaiian Home Lands is expected to end in 2014.

Thanks, but no thanks, Park said. "While we appreciate the author's intent to provide additional financial resources to the department, this particular activity is a departure from our current activities we use to generate revenues," he said.

"This is a really, really bad idea," Carlisle said. "Whenever there's an economic downturn, we start looking for desperate ways to get money. This is a desperate way to get money. It invites crime, it invites all the people who can't afford it."

Downtown resident Violet Horvath, who is with the Hawaii Coalition Against Legalized Gambling, said gambling addiction destroyed her parents' marriage, and nearly led to her mother killing her father to cash in on life insurance to sustain her habit.

"I have to live with that every day," Horvath said.

Lobbyist John Radcliffe, however, said that "making gambling legal in Hawai'i would be the most intelligent thing the Legislature could do this year."

Native American tribes in Wisconsin were among the poorest in the country when he was growing up in the Badger state, said Radcliffe, of Capitol Consultants of Hawaii. Today they are among the most financially well-off, he said.

Further, he said, "Wisconsin did not fall into a deep pit of degradation and sin."

Several Judiciary Committee members voted against the bill.

Rep. Barbara Marumoto, R-19th (Wai'alae Iki, Kalani Valley, Kahala), said "there's so many places you can put them on — all the islands — it may really be a bit much."

State's cut

Under the proposal, DHHL would receive 80 percent of the proceeds from the casino while the state general fund would get the remaining 20 percent share.

Karamatsu's single-casino plan also has detractors. Eighteen of the 51 House members voted against the measure, which now goes to the Finance Committee.

Originally, the bill attempted to bar Hawai'i residents from playing in the one casino. But that provision was taken out after some House members questioned its constitutionality.

A third gambling measure would have put the question of whether gaming should be allowed in Hawai'i in the hands of voters in the form of a constitutional amendment. But House Bill 146 was shelved by the Judiciary Committee yesterday.

Several gambling bills remain alive in the Senate, including ones that would legalize slots and video games, a type of lottery, and a state-sponsored "scratch" card game. None of those bills have received any committee hearings or are scheduled to be heard, making it unlikely they will make it out of the Senate.

Bankruptcy ahead?

AFTER a week of fruitless debate, the Los Angeles City Council takes up the budget debate again today. And if past discussions are any indication, very little will be decided by a council too afraid to make the hard - and politically unpopular - decisions.

Instead the city will slip one step closer to insolvency.

The city of Los Angeles is in immediate financial danger with a $212 million shortfall just for the last few months of this current fiscal year. Next fiscal year, which begins in July, the city is anticipating $400 million less in revenue than expenses.

These are dire straits, yet city leaders are still equivocating about permanently reducing the city's single largest cost: payroll. Last week, after hearing hours of heartfelt testimony from employees worried about losing their jobs, the council put off a vote on layoffs for at least 30 days.

Meanwhile, it came up with a convoluted plan of finding "savings" around City Hall, including canceling the once-a-month council meeting in Van Nuys City Hall. The plan seeks to pump out new revenue by collecting from people and companies that owe the city and levying new taxes on Angelenos, while also protecting general city workers from layoffs by transferring them into proprietary city agency jobs - the airport, the port and the water and power utility.

Really? This is how our representatives think they can solve the city's money problems?

"My goal is to find jobs for every one of our city employees," said Councilwoman Janice Hahn. She was dead serious - and unaware that her words illustrate our elected officials' grossly distorted priorities. Don't Hahn and her council cohorts have a responsibility to put the 4 million Angelenos before the 40,000 city employees?

The budget pussyfooting last week prompted Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa into action. Apparently exasperated with the embarrassing lack of leadership from the council, the mayor announced that he was bypassing the council and ordering 1,000 layoffs himself.

But, like so much of what comes from the Mayor's Office, it seems more bark than bite. Turns out it's unclear if the mayor has the authority to order layoffs; City Attorney Carmen Trutanich - who has said he's not letting any of his legions of lawyers get the boot - said he doesn't think so. Meanwhile, the real crux of the mayor's plan is the idea of leasing out the city's parking structures for a one-time boost of income. Not exactly awe-inspiring stuff.

If this is how Los Angeles' leaders think they can safely guide the city through the worst economy since the Great Depression, then Los Angeles is surely headed toward bankruptcy. Maybe that's not the worst that can happen. It's unlikely any outside parties could do worse managing the city's finances than those elected to do the job.

Hawaii lawmakers to consider raising excise tax to help end teacher furloughs

HONOLULU (AP) - Three state Senate committees are set to consider legislation that would raise Hawaii's general excise tax and use special state funds to eliminate teacher furlough days later this year.

Twenty-four more furlough days are scheduled for this school year and the next. The bill, SB 2437, aims to eliminate as many of those as possible.

It would increase the excise tax by one percentage point but offset the burden by exempting food purchases and raising the standard deduction on state income taxes.

It also would transfer an unspecified amount from the state hurricane and budget reserve funds to help end the furloughs.

The measure is to be heard Wednesday at the state Capitol by the committees on education, human services and consumer protection.

(This version CORRECTS the number of furlough days remaining in the second paragraph.)

Some never before seen: NYPD World Trade Center 9/11 Aerial Photos

HERE'S A SAMPLE FROM ABC AT LINK BELOW : MANY THANKS TO ABC!!!


VIEW SLIDESHOW HERE FIRST THEN CONTINUE. Although the twin towers are featured I wish to call your attention to WTC 7 in the pictures - the smoking gun of 9/11.

From the article:
" Looking at these images never gets any easier. The photos that follow depict the horrible images of the September 11, 2001 attacks and the aftermath of the recovery efforts where some 2800 innocent people died, including those aboard hijacked flights American 11 and United 175. ABC News recently obtained these images after filing a Freedom of Information Act request in 2009 with the National Institute of Standards and Technology, which had collected as part of an investigation into the collapse of the World Trade Center. (Det. Greg Semendinger/NYC Police Aviation Unit"
------
Notes: Whether looking at the pics gets any easier or not makes no difference. One wonders why a Freedom of Information Act request is necessary to gain access to these photos. It is also bewildering that ABC news is interested enough in the WTC attacks to post some pictures but remains silent on the mountain of investigative work done by grass roots citizen investigators.

Pictures 3, 4, and 5 show WTC7 in remarkably good condition.

Remember that all 24 support columns of WTC 7 had to be removed within 1/10 of a second of each other for WTC 7 to collapse in the manner documented in the video below. The official explanation given to the public for the collapse of WTC 7 is that the collapse was caused by fire.

If you haven't yet seen this video please watch it - and compare with above photos.

See time = 6:31 in the video below for diagram showing building position.

Building 7 - Gone in 7 - WHAT YOU ARE NOT SUPPOSED TO KNOW ABOUT 9/11 !!

-------
UPDATE: Commission Chairman - The 911 Commission was set up to fail


UPDATE: NIST REPORT ON WTC7 DEBUNKED


UPDATE 60 Aerospace Engineers call for a New 9/11 Investigation

02/09/10 Ron Paul with Brian Sullivan : Fed Involved with Greece Bailout!

Click this link ..... http://eclipptv.com/viewVideo.php?video_id=9969

The Housing Market - Stop the Republicans and Democrats from Helping You

Click this link ..... http://eclipptv.com/viewVideo.php?video_id=9963

The Coming Euro Collapse- Euro Crisis BBC Special

Click this link ...... http://eclipptv.com/viewVideo.php?video_id=9970

美國‧紐約警用直升機拍攝‧911鳥瞰照首度曝光

（美國‧紐約）美國911恐怖襲擊雖然已經過去了近10年，但依然是美國人心中抹不去的痛。

紐約警方週三（2月10日）公佈了911恐怖襲擊事件發生時的航拍照片，這些極具震撼力的照片，讓讀者有機會從空中目擊世界貿易中心倒塌的一幕：從第一架飛機撞擊世貿中心大樓到雙子塔垮塌後掀起的遮天蔽日塵土，無不呈現在大家眼前。

世貿中心塔樓倒塌後，塵煙滾滾，驚心動魄，大量灰塵和殘骸像海浪般撲向周圍地區，幾乎將整個下曼哈頓區淹沒。（圖：法新社）

唯一一架載攝影師

這批照片都是由一架在空中巡邏的警用直升機拍攝的；這也是2001年9月11日紐約世貿中心上空唯一一架載有攝影師的直升機。

美國廣播公司（ABC）總共獲得了2779張紐約警方從空中拍攝的911事件全程照片，其中有許多照片從未對外發佈。

這間公司選取了12張最具震撼力的照片發表在其網站上。

照片拍攝人紐約警察局警探賽曼丁格表示，他在911事件當天共拍攝了3膠卷照片和245張數碼相片。

正在籌劃中的911事件博物館希望，能夠獲得全部有關本次恐怖襲擊事件的圖片，以便能在日後公開對外展出。

中國‧4萬人赴台過年‧兩岸春運直航一票難求

（中國‧北京）今年是兩岸開通定期直航後的第一個春節，又加開了春節航班，因此一場另類“春運”首次在海峽兩岸上演。

直飛的客流“虎虎生風”，乘客中除了趕著返鄉過年的人們，還有躍躍欲試趁長假赴台的4萬旅遊大軍。

虎年春節到台灣感受不一樣的年味，成為許多中國民眾最夯的選擇，帶動赴台遊價格直線上揚，航空機票更是一票難求，尤其今年春節和情人節“撞日”，“遊台灣”變成情侶間最浪漫的禮物。

中國的航空公司高層表示，因“春運”航班供不應求，春節過後兩岸會立即啟動增加航班及航點的協商。

今年是兩岸首次在定期航班基礎上，實施加開春節航班，期間往返兩岸的直航班次，由每週270個定期航班，遽增至374個。

據台灣旅行商業同業公會預計，春節假期間將4萬人的中國旅遊團，帶進20億元新台幣（約馬幣2億1307萬令吉）的龐大商機，無論人數、金額都將創下新高。

中國‧我無罪、我不服、我抗議、我上訴‧譚作人遞交上訴狀

（中國‧北京）因揭露四川豆腐渣工程而被當局以煽動顛覆國家政權罪判監5年的維權人士譚作人，週三（2月10日）向法院遞交上訴狀：“我無罪。我不服。我抗議。我上訴。”表明他對裁決的不滿及控訴。

譚作人透過代表律師浦志強向法院提交親筆上訴書，只有一頁紙，主要內容是他所寫的12字控訴，他不但在上訴書上親筆簽名，而且打了手指模。

精神平靜

浦志強稱，譚作人的心理和精神狀態都非常平靜，他沒有對一審被判囚5年感到十分激動。

他表示，雖然譚作人希望法治政府、法治社會早日實現，但在這個轉型時代，他揭發各種弊案，可能會觸到某些利益集團、個別領導人及既得利益群體的特殊利益，恐怕要為此付出“一些代價”。

法院週二（2月9日）的判詞沒觸及豆腐渣工程，主要針對譚作人曾經發表與“六四”事件相關言論，包括撰寫文章《1989：見證最後的美麗，一個目擊者的廣場日記》，以及在四川天府廣場倡導為川震災區義務獻血，紀念“六四”事件。

美國‧暴雪襲美‧巴西熱浪‧墨國洪災‧厄爾尼諾引發多國天災

（巴西‧聖保羅、美國‧紐約）美國的暴風雪、巴西的熱浪、墨西哥的洪災以及厄瓜多爾的乾旱，這些席捲美洲的極端氣候，都是厄爾尼諾現象在作怪！

厄爾尼諾現象導致太平洋中部的海水表面異常高溫，從而干擾大氣層系統，在美洲大陸引發風暴，並促使多國宣佈緊急狀態應災。

美國東岸在一週內迎來第二場風雪，首都華盛頓、費城及紐約到週三晚都會降暴風雪；在弗吉尼亞州亞歷山德里亞的一座添油站，站長試圖剷除困住汽車的積雪。（圖：法新社）

巴西32人熱死

正當美國東岸包括首都華盛頓遭受1週內第二股強烈暴風雪吹襲，降雪量打破百年紀錄，導致海、陸、空交通大混亂之際，位於南美洲的巴西，卻遭受50年來最嚴重的熱浪襲擊，氣溫高達攝氏46度，熱死32人。

氣象專家說，南、北美洲天氣反常，多國遭受天災打擊，都與厄爾尼諾現象有關。

巴西里約熱內盧正經歷50年來最嚴酷的熱浪侵襲，里約熱內盧週二（2月9日）錄得攝氏46.3度高溫，屬全球最高，比非洲撒哈拉沙漠當天的33度高出13度；而南部城市桑托斯，週一（2月8日）及週二便有32名長者因熱浪喪生。

厄爾尼諾現象也在美洲大陸其他地區帶來致命洪災。

巴西聖保羅州，近兩個月來幾乎連續不斷的降雨已經奪走逾70人的性命。

墨玻秘3國豪雨成災

墨西哥全國有一半地區受水災蹂躪，滂沱大雨引發山泥傾瀉，至今已尋獲42具屍體；玻利維亞和秘魯同樣豪雨成災，引致死傷；阿根廷一條河流可能決堤，當局下令布宜諾斯艾利斯省進入緊急狀態。

厄瓜多爾旱災

不過，厄瓜多爾則受旱災煎熬，正經歷40年來最嚴酷的旱季；而委內瑞拉的湖泊及河流水位也持續下降，令水力發電廠無法運作，促使總統查維斯週一宣佈進入“能源緊急狀態”。

美每日損失逾3億

美國東北部在一週內迎來第2場風雪，首都華盛頓及其他城市在週三（2月10日）的降雪量打破110年來的紀錄，一片漫天風雪的白茫茫景象，許多政府部門的辦公室暫停服務，商店關門，公共交通幾乎陷入癱瘓，數以萬計的住戶受到停電影響，成為市民記憶中最艱難的一個冬天。

在華盛頓特區，公務員今日（週四，2月11日）連續停工4天，平均每日的生產損失估計高達1億美元（約馬幣3億4286萬令吉）。

由於天氣太惡劣，位於紐約的聯合國總部大樓也停止辦公；不過，華爾街一些大行和大企業如常運作。一些員工上班後無法歸家，滯留在公司內。

多座城市形同癱瘓

從華盛頓到巴爾的摩、從費城到紐約，公共交通縮減服務班次、成千上萬趟班機取消、部份高速大道也被封鎖，導致多座城市形同癱瘓。

受暴風雪影響，美國兩條高速公路週3分別發生了50輛汽車連環追尾事故，共造成22人受傷，其中兩人傷勢嚴重。

氣象局警告，大雪瀰漫導致能見度下降，再加上伴有最高時速達50公里的強風，民眾出行將“極其危險”。

美國‧伊朗封鎖谷歌電郵

（美國‧華盛頓）在傳出伊朗當局決定在境內永久封鎖“谷歌電郵”（Gmail）服務後，全球最大的互聯網搜索引擎“谷歌”（Google）週三（2月10日）證實，伊朗用戶已無法登入“谷歌電郵”。

美國《華爾街日報》週三報導，伊朗電信當局宣佈境內永久性封鎖“谷歌電郵”，並計劃為伊朗市民提供全國電郵服務。

總部設在美國加州芒廷維尤的谷歌公司未能證實有關報導，但表示，有來自伊朗用戶表示無法正常使用“谷歌電郵”。

這間公司發表聲明稱：“我們可以證實，電郵使用率近日驟減，我們在檢查自己的網絡和服務器後，發現一切操作正常。”

聲明說：“每當我們的服務受阻時，我們都會設法儘快解決問題，因為我們堅信，每個地方的人都應該可以自由上網通訊。不幸的是，有時候事情不受我們控制。”

今年正好是伊朗回教革命31週年，當局今日（週四，2月11日）將在德黑蘭舉行大型集會，反對派也計劃在這一天舉行反政府示威，

過去，反對派支持者利用YouTube、Twitter及面子書等網站來互通音訊。

新加坡‧1年只換內衣1次‧論壇調查驚揭“不潔”女

（新加坡）論壇調查發現，新加坡不少女性每週只更換內衣一次。

截至2月9日為止，共有239人參與了上述論壇的調查。調查數據顯示，有108人（即45.18%）每天都會清洗及更換內衣，但有42人（17.57%）卻是每週更換內衣一次的。

一個網絡新聞網指出，根據新加坡人口來推算，上述數據顯示了新加坡有多達30%的女性，每週才更換內衣一次或更少。

有6人從來不更換內衣

當中有6人聲稱，她們每年只更換內衣一次，另6人則說，她們從來不更換內衣。

這個新聞網的作者指出，上述調查結果，令人對新加坡女性的衛生水平感到訝異。

他指出，新加坡處於熱帶並且濕度高的國家，因此他印象中，女性應該每天都清洗內衣。

他認為，雖然不少新加坡女性在有冷氣設備的環境工作，較少出汗，但是由於身體皮膚會產生油脂，嚴重的話會產生異味，因此還是每天換洗內衣較為妥當。

鷹閣醫院婦產專科醫生方壯威認為，在辦公室環境工作的女性，沒甚麼流汗的話，其實是不需要每天更換內衣的。

他說，內衣不像內褲，女性下體經常會有分泌，因此內褲必須每天勤換。

他也指出，並非每個人的皮膚都會產生油脂。

不過，對於容易流汗的女性，他則勸諭應該每天替換內衣幾次，以保持身體的乾爽，並杜絕細菌滋生於內衣裡面。

新加坡‧彎腰拿東西露出胸罩‧藝人陳靚瑄走光照上網

（新加坡）新加坡藝人陳靚瑄走光照，被網友放上網。

新加坡一網站早前出現1張新傳媒女藝人陳靚瑄的走光照。

網站指出，陳靚瑄是出現在上週日的一個節目中，意外走光的。照片中陳靚瑄正彎著腰，要從地上拿起東西，隱約可見的是陳靚瑄衣服內所穿的黑色胸罩。

網站還特地連續播放陳靚瑄走光的一幕，看樣子，陳靚瑄走光的時間也不過1-2秒長。

1名不願透露姓名的藝人表示，藝人若走光，自己也應該負上責任，而並不一定是上載照片的人的錯。這名藝人認為，陳靚瑄若是同意穿上這麼寬鬆的衣服，卻又因此走光，就怪不得別人了。

陳靚瑄近來厄運連連，去年爆出整容疑雲，無法入圍《紅星大獎》重要獎項，外公去世，忍痛完成慈善表演，如今又意外走光，照片被放上網。

新加坡‧聖淘沙名勝世界賭場影城‧大年初一開業

（新加坡）聖淘沙名勝世界賭場和環球影城將會在2月14日，也就是大年初一和情人節當天一起營業。

新加坡交易所今日（週四，2月11日）中午宣佈，聖淘沙名勝世界週四早上通知交易所，賭場和環球影城營業的日期。

據悉，名勝世界將在大年初一早上11時18分開幕，環球影城則將在當天傍晚開幕。而兩個時辰都是經新加坡一名著名風水師計算後，挑選出來的好時辰。

新加坡風水師受訪時說，在大年初一開幕的確是個大吉日，不但能帶動大批人潮到名勝世界，到訪者也會笑容滿面，橫財就手。

年初一是一年中最旺

風水師金子龍就說，初一是華人拜年的好日子，是一年到頭最旺的日子。

“在大旺日開幕，可以吸引到吉神到訪賭場，使得整個運作順利、帶旺人氣。賭客們也會玩得很盡興，運氣加倍。”

新加坡著名風水師慧戒師傅說，賭場的開幕時間如果是選在“11時18分”（1118），有“要要要發”的含義，代表賭客進入時就會發。

他說，這個時間是午時，代表了一匹駿馬的沖勁，肯定能夠帶來人潮。

與影城商討同日開幕

據悉，之前有傳說賭場會在除夕日（2月13日）開幕，後來，又有傳言指，賭場會提早在週五（2月12日），搶先環球影城一步開幕，據說是因為，美國環球城影城與名勝世界經過一番商討與斟酌之後認為，賭場與影城，還是要一起開張大吉，效果會比較好。

於是，名勝世界才又讓風水師另擇開幕吉日，最後敲定開幕日為大年初一。

金卡會員率先進賭場

雖然賭場在大年初一才開始營業，但金卡會員將率先進賭場！

記者週四早上在聖淘沙名勝世界賭場巧遇3名賭場金卡會員，她們透露，已接獲名勝世界邀請，將在週四晚上入住酒店！

一名不願具名的女士說，持有金卡的朋友也已受邀入住酒店。

據瞭解，這種金卡是雲頂賭場根據賭客在賭博時累計的積分頒發，分成金卡會員、銀卡會員和普通會員。金卡會員一般是俗稱的“豪客”。

這些金卡金卡會員相信會下榻在4家已開放的酒店中，最奢華的康樂福豪華酒店（Crockfords Tower），因為這家酒店只接待受邀的賭場豪客。

運鈔員已開始練習運錢！

聖淘沙賭場週四早上仍顯得平靜，入口處用紅帶圍起，沒有工作人員進出，也不見大規模的彩排活動。

但記者在現場發現有幾名工作人員在練習運鈔。

一名男運鈔員從賭場左側的“娛樂場征稅”處推出一輛運鈔小推車，另有幾人“護航”，進入賭場內。

據瞭解，賭場一般用這種運鈔車將賭注運到賭場內的保險柜，平均每隔幾小時就要運一次。