Inhalt:

Global Manufacturing PMI Summary
50 = no change on previous month.
             Nov   Dec    Summary
Global PMI   36.5  33.2   Index at series-record low
Output       33.1  28.8   Index at series-record low
New Orders   29.8  25.3   Index at series-record low
Input Prices 36.2  31.3   Index at series-record low
Employment   39.6  36.7   Index at series-record low

The average price of cyber land has dropped from 12.06 Linden dollars (seven cents) a square metre at its peak in January 2007 to 1.98 Linden dollars (1 cent) last month. While The Sun-Herald obtained price comparisons from net archives, Linden Lab chief Mark Kingdon boasted last week of a record currency trade, saying, "There's no credit crunch in Second Life."
[...]
Premium Second Life accounts, where members pay for extra services, were down globally 16 per cent, from a peak of 94,607 in June 2007 to 79,721 last month.
[...]
But the Second Life headquarters of 20 international brands were reduced to "ghost towns" this year, says PhD student Kim MacKenzie.

The move out of what were previously regarded as safe and stable investments followed a record year of investor inflows in 2007.

Total sales fell to $20.8 billion from $23.1 billion a year earlier, the Semiconductor Industry Association said in a Business Wire statement today. In the first 11 months of 2008, sales rose 0.2 percent to $232.7 billion from a year earlier. In October global chip sales declined 2.4 percent.

Researchers with the Australian Institute of Marine Science looked at the skeletal records of porites corals collected over the years at 69 reefs along the 1,600-mile-long Great Barrier Reef. Those corals, some 400 years old, showed that calcification declined by 13 percent between 1990 and 2005.

That, they wrote, left "two most likely" factors, both tied to carbon dioxide emissions: warming sea temperatures and more acidic oceans as CO2 raises the pH levels of the seas.

But not anymore.

In an alarming yet little-noticed series of recent studies, scientists have concluded that Canada's precious forests, stressed from damage caused by global warming, insect infestations and persistent fires, have crossed an ominous line and are now pumping out more climate-changing carbon dioxide than they are sequestering.

"We are seeing a significant distortion of the natural trend," said Werner Kurz, senior research scientist at the Canadian Forest Service and the leading expert on carbon cycles in the nation's forests. "Since 1999, and especially in the last five years, the forests have shifted from being a carbon sink to a carbon source."

Higher temperatures also are accelerating the spread of a deadly pest known as the mountain pine beetle, which has devastated pine forests across British Columbia and is threatening vital timber in the neighboring province of Alberta. More than 50,000 square miles of British Columbia's pine forest have been stricken so far with the telltale markers of death: needles that turn bright red before falling off the tree.

Bitter cold Canadian winters used to kill off much of the pine beetle population each year, naturally keeping it in check. But the milder winters of recent years have allowed the insect to proliferate.

Volcanic eruptions release huge amounts of sulphate particles into the upper atmosphere, where they reflect sunlight. After Mount Pinatubo erupted in 1991, sulphates reflected enough sunlight to cool the Earth by 0.5C for a year or two. The Nobel Laureate Paul Crutzen suggested in 2006 that it may be possible to inject artificial sulphate particles into the upper atmosphere – the stratosphere. However, the idea does not address ocean acidification caused by rising CO2 levels. There may be side-effects such as acid rain and adverse effects on agriculture.

Another variation on the theme of increasing the Earth's albedo, or reflectivity to sunlight, is to pump water vapour into the air to stimulate cloud formation over the sea. John Latham of the United States National Centre for Atmospheric Research in Boulder, Colorado is working with Stephen Salter of Edinburgh University and Mike Smith at Leeds to atomise seawater to produce tiny droplets to form low-level maritime clouds that cover part of the oceanic surface. The only raw material is seawater and the process can be quickly turned off. The cloud cover would only affect the oceans, but still lower global temperatures.

This idea arises from the fact that the limiting factor in the multiplication of phytoplankton – tiny marine plants – is the lack of iron salts in the sea. When scientists add iron to "dead" areas of the sea, the result is a phytoplankton bloom which absorbs CO2. The hope is that carbon taken up by the microscopic plants will sink to deep layers of the ocean, and be taken out of circulation. Experiments support the idea, but blooms may be eaten by animals so carbon returns to the atmosphere as CO2.

The Earth scientist James Lovelock, working with Chris Rapley of the Science Museum in London, devised a plan to put giant tubes into the seas to take surface water rich in dissolved CO2 to lower depths where it will not surface. The idea is to take CO2 out of the short-term carbon cycle, cutting the gas in the atmosphere. Critics say it may bring carbon locked away in the deep ocean to the surface.

Some scientists suggest it would be possible to deflect sunlight with a giant mirror or a fleet of small mirrors between the Earth and the Sun. The scheme would be costly and prompt debate over who controls it. Many scientists see it as contrary to the idea of working with the Earth's systems.

Convert the export figures into China's own currency, a much better measure of the effect on the Chinese economy, and exports plunged 9.6 percent in November. Factor in inflation over the past year and the plunge was 11.4 percent.

Regional IPO offerings were $22.4 million in the October- November period compared with $6 billion raised from 10 IPOs during the same time a year earlier, Ernst & Young LLP said in an e-mail received today.

“The drop in activity in the last two months is the result of current investor sentiment and the effect of the global financial crisis on regional markets,” Phil Gandier, a Transaction Advisory Services partner at Ernst & Young, said in the statement. “Issuers are not willing to accept current market valuations and therefore scheduled IPOs coming to the markets are being delayed.”

The department said air pollution levels in the three main shopping and business districts were dangerous for more than 2,000 hours last year -- the highest figure since it began taking roadside recordings in 2000.

Export contracts by 12.1 per cent in October, showing a negative trend for the first time in the last five years. For the April-November period, the country's cumulative exports grew by 19.4 per cent to USD 119.30 billion.

Growth for the first half of the fiscal was 30.9 per cent. Imports between April and November went up by 33 per cent to USD 203.64 billion.

Commercial and passenger vehicle sales in India and overseas reached 25,219 units last month, compared with 47,678 units a year earlier, Mumbai-based Tata Motors said in an e-mailed statement today. Commercial vehicle sales in India fell 51 percent to 14,056 units, it said.

That kind of thinking — which automakers here have dubbed "kuruma banare," or "demotorization" — is a U-turn from earlier generations of Japanese who viewed car ownership as a status symbol. The trend is worrying Japan's auto executives, who fear the nation's love affair with the auto may be coming to an end.

Makino, the young man who plays what he calls "organic folk music," is typical of the new breed who scoffs at the sportscar-idolizing culture of the older generation.

He and his friends see cars as nothing more than a tool, much like a vacuum cleaner, not a reflection of their identity, tastes or income level. Makino's father own a car, but he has never owned one. And he doesn't know a Honda Fit from a Toyota Vitz.

Motoharu Ishii has turned his Honda dealership into a special shop for dog-owners. Bigger dogs can't travel in Japanese trains, and so pet owners may be among the last holdouts in car ownership.

He helps them fit their vehicles with cages, offers discount coupons at dog runs, and has a fuzzy mat ready for visiting pets — in the same way some dealers prepare play areas for children.

              Vessel             Capacity          Days              Start
               name                (ft.)        contracted           date
          Ocean Voyager           3,000             931          Aug - 10 - 07
          Noble Max Smith         6,000           1,095          Sep - 30 - 08
          Sea Dragon I            7,000           1,825          Jan - 02 - 10
          Petro Rig III           7,000           1,825          Jan - 03 - 10
          Muralla III            10,000           1,825          Sep - 01 - 10

Production dropped to 2.711 million barrels a day, from 2.901 million barrels a day a year earlier, the company known as Pemex said today on its Web site. In an e-mail, Pemex cited Cantarell, its largest field, as the reason for the drop.

The Mexico City-based company in October lowered its 2008 output forecast by 3.6 percent to as low as 2.7 million barrels a day after interruptions from hurricanes. It was the third time Pemex reduced its forecast this year, after a faster-than- expected decline at Cantarell, the world’s third-largest field.

Cantarell’s output fell 33 percent, more than twice as fast as government estimates, to 862,060 barrels a day from a year earlier. Declining pressure at Cantarell has made it more expensive and harder to continue pumping oil from the offshore deposit.

The CB faces other issues as well:
(a) this onshore system covers an extended area of 2,400 sq miles, thus requiring extensive infrastructure development,
(b) the overwhelming majority of the reserves are classified as heavy,
(c) oil recovery rates barely reach 10 % and the field is expected to peak in 2016.
In his 2005 book, The Coming Oil Crisis, Colin Campbell claims Mexico systematically exaggerates the recoverable oil in the CB.

Mexico is heavily investing in KMZ to offset the decline of Cantarell. A $ 4 bn investment was aimed at raising oil output by injecting nitrogen and natural gas into wells to provide an enhanced oil recovery surge.
Oil experts are sceptical that these procedures will make a significant difference. As John Padilla, an oil analyst with the energy consulting firm IPD Latin America has stated: "The big question is, can they have that much production online from KMZ? The problem is they do not have a Plan B."

The decline in remittances “shows that one of the most important sources of inflows to the Mexican economy is shrinking,” said Bartosz Pawlowski, an emerging-market strategist at TD Securities Inc. in London. “The situation in the U.S. labor market has impacted the amount of money that Mexicans send back home. That’s troublesome.”
[...]
The plunging U.S. economy has put Mexican laborers out of work. About 38 percent of Mexican immigrants in the U.S. work in construction and manufacturing, according to the central bank. Transfers from abroad are heading for the first yearly decline since the central bank began tracking the data in 1995.

The power crisis in the Himalayan state was created mainly due to low level of water in the major hydro power plants of Nepal.

Electricity is expensive and available only for a few hours. Gas pressure in many residential areas is inadequate even for cooking or heating homes.

Domestic users are suffering in many residential localities and they get adequate gas pressure only after midnight when they cook food for next day. Some localities face no gas supply problem at all. Suburbs are facing more acute shortage than the main City.

Petrol shortage has resulted partly from short petrol supply and partly from storage by vehicles owners. Petrol pumps are also unwilling to stock petrol fearing a price drop. Petrol pump owners want their commission increased - something the government had agreed to implement from January 1, 2009.

They won’t be interested in buying petrol on December 30 and 31.

They also fear that petrol rates would decrease from January 1, 2009 in view of rapidly declining global crude oil rates. Dealers are not storing petrol because of fears of downward revision in its prices from January 1.

All two stroke auto-rickshaws also run on LPG. Its price has shot up from Rs 720 for 11.5 kg cylinder to Rs 1,150. Naturally, rickshaw wallahs now seek higher fare than a few days ago.

The protest rally was taken out on the call of Labour Qaumi Movement. Sizing Industry Association, Powerloom Owners Council and general public also took part in the demonstration.

Many small rallies also joined the Labour Qaumi Movement rally and blocked main roads of the city for many hours. Later, the angry mob staged a sit-in outside the Fesco office and chanted slogans against the government and Wapda.

According to a press release issued here on Thursday, the Ministry of Clarified that PEPCO was currently generating 7000 MW at peak against a demand of 11000 MW, thus having a short-fall of around 4000 MW (36%).

The reasons for shortfall have been attributed to low water releases from the dams due to annual canal closure as well as oil and gas shortages. The current shortfall of water is 2500 MW, oil shortfall 2050 MW and Gas Short-fall 750 MW.

The price index of private residential property fell to 163.4 points in the three months ended Dec. 31, from 173.30 in the previous quarter, the Urban Redevelopment Authority said in a statement on its Web site today. That’s the largest drop since the three months ended Dec. 31, 1998, according to data tracked by Bloomberg.

Prices for apartments in the so-called core central area dropped 6.3 percent in the three months ended Dec. 31 and slipped 5.5 percent elsewhere in central Singapore, according to the Urban Redevelopment Authority. They fell 4.7 percent across other parts of the island, today’s report showed.

The fall in December's exports compared with expectations in a Reuters poll for a fall of 16.4 percent.

The Ministry of Knowledge Economy also said imports in December slid 21.5 percent over a year earlier, missing a 19.1 percent fall forecast in the Reuters poll.

Dear Hank:

You have outdone yourself once again, my loyal servant, with these fraudulent, deliciously deceptive proposals to reform the utterly corrupt financial system you exploited so profitably as head of Goldman Sachs.

My plans for the destruction of the United States of America have been going along rather swimmingly until we rushed things a bit with Bear Stearns--ah, the wondrous power of pure, unmitigated greed! It remains my favorite tool--and calls for reform were suddenly everywhere.

The rules which would have undone us were simple indeed, as you know all too well:

1. complete transparency of risk and leverage in all financial documents and financial instruments
2. the marking to market of all financial instruments and assets at the close of the trading day, as is currently done with commodities futures and stock options
3. the banning of "off balance sheet" accounting
4. the banning of offshore accounts and holding companies
5. the uniform enforcement of these regulations across all financial classes, assets, firms, brokers and banks

As you know, Hank, transparency, mark-to-market and strictly enforced regulations of all banks, broker-dealers and financial institutions would deal a death blow to my plans to destroy the U.S. via destruction of its financial system. Having sold your soul to me for the glory and riches you received at Goldman Sachs, you had to comply with my orders to destroy any such useful regulations with cunning "fixes" of your own.

Though I counted on your native feral survival instincts, I did not expect a plan of such evil genius. Imagine how foolish and naive humans must be to accept your "fix"! My mind boggles at the ease with which you have conned the gullible gallery of idiots in Congress and the mainstream media:

1. you diminish the powers of the Federal agencies and favor the "shadow government" Federal Reserve, which is not even a government agency but a private institution
2. Instead of proposing transparency, you are adding another layer of secrecy in what the Fed can investigate and do to "fix" future problems
3. Enable more "self-regulation" (hahahaha, I can't stop laughing at this one! You really are a comedian!)

I am still amused that the American populace hasn't noticed that you, Master of the Dark Arts at Goldman Sachs, have been duly appointed as the wolf assigned to guard the sheep. Now you have suggested opening the rusty wire fencing and lighting the opening so your brethren can more easily slip in and slaughter as many sheep as they wish--and the American sheep sit there mesmerized by my other crowning achievement, the TV, blithely accepted that the most voracious, cleverest wolf is now their "guardian." Never in my wildest imaginations did I hope for such gross stupidity, ignorance and naivite.

Keep up the fine work--

Your Lord and Master,

Lucifer

In another a move toward normalcy, GMAC said it will extend its low-rate loans to those with less-than-perfect credit.

Ford Motor analyst George Pipas says too many would-be buyers still are being kept out of the market by tight credit. Many can't get a loan even as Ford runs an employee-pricing promotion, through Monday, that Pipas says offers the deepest discounts of the year.

Besides low interest, GM is offering incentives up to $10,000 on some remaining 2008 models.

With gas prices down, pickups are hot at Prestige Ford in Garland, Texas. "We've been busy," says John Thull, the general sales manager. "Good deals to be had on just about everything."

Sales are brisk — helped by a 0.9% interest rate — at Bob Smith BMW/Mini in Calabasas, Calif., says Tim Smith, president.

Peterson Super Center in Boise, for instance, has a "two-for-the-price-of-one" sale this week: Buy a full-size Cadillac or Chevy SUV or Chevy diesel pickup at full price and get a free 2009 Chevy Cobalt sedan. Interest in the deal has been "really good," ad director Sharon Potter says.

Such a failure rate would mark a huge increase from previous years. In 2007 some 13,500 firms went under. In the two years of the last recession in 1991-92, 100,000 firms failed.

Mass failures of small and medium enterprises would also add to Britain’s mounting job losses because such companies employ 60% of the 22m workforce.

At stake is one of the largest oil reserves in the world, a vast cache trapped beneath the Rocky Mountains containing an estimated 800 billion barrels -- about three times the reserves of Saudi Arabia.

That water-to-oil equation has inflamed officials in the upper Rockies, who are raising the alarm about the cumulative effect of energy projects on the region's water supplies, which ultimately feed Southern California reservoirs via the Colorado River.

"There are estimates that oil shale could use all of the remaining water in upper Colorado River Basin," said Susan Daggett, a commissioner on the Denver Water Board. "That essentially pits oil shale against people's needs."

To prevent the brewing hydrocarbons from spoiling groundwater, the heated rock core is surrounded by 20-to-30-foot-thick impermeable ice walls, frozen by electric refrigeration units.

The study's sobering bottom line is that meeting oil shale's energy demands could require more water than Colorado is entitled to under an interstate compact.

The remainder would be used to fund middle-class tax cuts, stimulate the embattled housing market, and stem the tide of home foreclosures through a loan-modification program.

“There are some really extraordinary opportunities in the credit world,” said David Swensen, the school’s investment chief, in a phone interview from his office at the New Haven, Connecticut, university. “Everything, from bank loans to investment-grade bonds to less-than-investment grade bonds, is priced at really extraordinarily cheap levels.”

Swensen, 54, increased Yale’s endowment to $22.9 billion on June 30, from $1 billion in 1985 when he assumed the job, making it the second-wealthiest university in the U.S. The school estimated on Dec. 16 that the fund had fallen 25 percent, to $17 billion, because of the global financial crisis. Swensen, who has updated his 2000 book on investing for re-release Jan. 6, said periodic losses are inevitable in a portfolio tilted toward stocks and built to grow over many years.