Register for free to join our community of investors and share your ideas. You will also get access to streaming quotes, interactive charts, trades, portfolio, live options flow and more tools.
Register for free to join our community of investors and share your ideas. You will also get access to streaming quotes, interactive charts, trades, portfolio, live options flow and more tools.
USEC to Webcast Conference Call on November 2 at 8:30 a.m. ET
12:12 PM ET Oct 24, 2007
BETHESDA, Md., Oct 24, 2007 (BUSINESS WIRE) -- USEC Inc. (USU) will broadcast its next quarterly conference call with shareholders and the financial community over the Internet on Friday, November 2, 2007, at 8:30 a.m. ET. The Company will release its earnings for the third quarter of 2007 ended September 30, 2007, after markets close on Thursday, November 1, 2007.
The regularly scheduled call with shareholders and analysts will be open to listeners who may log in through the Company's website, www.usec.com. A link to the call will be located in the Investor Relations section and a replay will be available through November 12, 2007.
USEC Inc., a global energy company, is a leading supplier of enriched uranium fuel for commercial nuclear power plants.
SOURCE: USEC Inc.
USEC Inc.
Investors: Steven Wingfield, 301-564-3354
Media: Elizabeth Stuckle, 301-564-3399
Copyright Business Wire 2007
http://www.marketwatch.com/news/story/usec-webcast-conference-call-november/story.aspx?guid=%7B092BF9C6%2D3424%2D49BD%2DBE60%2D5301B6850C36%7D&dist=TQP_Mod_pressN
Added @8.10 em
Been Posting DD on the USU Yahoo Board.
Some fairly knowledgeable posters/industry workers there:
http://messages.finance.yahoo.com/mb/USU
http://search.messages.yahoo.com/search?.mbintl=finance&q=expatriate7&action=Search&r=Hu...
If it goes there, I'll be buying more along side you.
Thanks, Elmer. You, too. em
Picked up more @9.12 em
USU closed up nicely Friday (+4.79%). em
Thanks, Up-down. Nice board here.
And better yet, great stock (from here hopefully)!
Took a pretty good position in USU on yesterday's market sell-off.
Hopefully I'll be able to contribute some useful dd here in the days ahead.
Bill
expat7
Xohm May Get X'ed Out
David A. Utter's picture
Submitted by David A. Utter on Wed, 10/10/2007 - 12:50.
Sprint tossed out its CEO, who had backed a plan to build a WiMAX solution in the US. That plan appears to be in jeopardy.
It looks like potential customers for a high-speed WiMAX wireless service called Xohm can forget about the project.
CNet said investors are blanching at the prospect of a $5 billion price tag for a service that could extend mobile and Internet access at speeds better than 3G networks to 100 million people by the end of 2008.
A Sprint spokesperson cited in the report held out a glimmer of hope the next CEO won't stroll in and kill WiMAX:
"I can't speculate about what a new CEO will do," said Leigh Horner, spokeswoman for the company. "But for now, we are continuing to build out the WiMax network. We expect a soft launch of the service by the end of this year and a commercial launch in April of next year."
If it comes to pass that new Sprint leadership dumps the Xohm project, it becomes difficult to see where the promise of real high-speed mobile access will come from, especially if an existing telecom walks away with the 700MHz spectrum auction next year.
Sprint, WiMAX, Xohm
About the Author
David Utter is a staff writer for WebProNews covering technology and business.
http://www.webpronews.com/topnews/2007/10/10/xohm-may-get-xed-out
Sprint's Credit Rating Is Under Scrutiny
Credit-rating service Fitch says it's concerned about Sprint's lagging effort to switch subscribers from Nextel's iDEN network to its CDMA network and the cost of deploying WiMax.
By W. David Gardner
InformationWeek
October 10, 2007 11:37 AM
Sprint Nextel (NYSE: S) is bracing for another hit, this time from Fitch Ratings, which rates companies' credit worthiness. In addition to Sprint's oft-cited challenge to deploy WiMax, Fitch indicated it is concerned about the mobile phone service provider's lagging effort to switch subscribers from Nextel's iDEN network to Sprint's CDMA network.
In a statement released Tuesday, Fitch said it "believes the company faces significant technology and execution risk surrounding the migration of its iDEN subscriber base to CDMA and the implementation of its WiMax strategy."
When Sprint acquired Nextel in 2004, the new merged company sang the praises of the Nextel spectrum and how it was a valuable asset. While Nextel's spectrum has indeed been valuable, the downside of moving public safety groups like fire and police departments off it has become more onerous than expected.
The FCC has taken notice; last month the agency told Sprint it must accelerate the shift out of iDEN infrastructure. Initially Sprint said it could accomplish the task of shifting users from the iDEN band for $2.8 billion, but that figure seems like a mirage as the costs pile up.
Sprint has said that it has removed most of its signals from the public safety bands, but it has run into difficulty in relocating public safety organizations to substitute infrastructure that works properly.
Sprint took note of the problem in a statement this week in which it cited various situations, including "the impact of adverse network performance ... resulting from reduced network capacity and other adverse impacts resulting from the reconfiguration of the 800 megahertz, or MHz, band used to operate our iDEN network."
As for WiMax, Fitch said Sprint will have to spend "several billion dollars in investment as well as the incurrence of significant start-up operating losses" deploying the wide area wireless technology. WiMax is being deployed in spots in the United States and the technology hasn't even been certified by the WiMax Forum; it is expected to ultimately be successful and in widespread use, but the cost and timetable are constantly lengthening.
Fitch also said Sprint's recent announcements highlight additional challenges faced by the mobile phone provider, including subscriber additions and churn. The credit rating operation noted some Sprint strengths, including its "considerable scale" and the fact that it "generates significant cash flow." Fitch added: "Sprint Nextel's liquidity position is sufficient given its cash position, free cash flow, and available draw under its credit facility." Fitch noted that Sprint had $1.7 billion in cash at the end of the second quarter of 2007.
http://www.informationweek.com/story/showArticle.jhtml?articleID=202400939&cid=RSSfeed_IWK_News
The Next Major PPS Driver for CLWR:
This article seems to lay out the Sprint WiMax situation pretty well. If nitwit Whitworth and his like get their way, CLWR will consequently take a seriously tumble. If Sprint keeps the roll-out of WiMax, including a finalizing its agreement with Clearwire in the timely manner it needs, CLWR will fly
Sprint's WiMax dilemma
By Marguerite Reardon, News.com
Published on ZDNet News: Oct 10, 2007 4:00:00 AM
TalkBack
If Wall Street pundits get their way, Sprint Nextel's next CEO will put the brakes on plans for a new, high-speed wireless network.
But such a move, while no doubt cutting costs, could condemn the struggling company to also-ran status.
After months of declining subscriber numbers, Sprint Nextel announced Monday that CEO Gary Forsee had stepped down as chairman and chief executive officer. Forsee's departure had been a long time coming, as investors, upset over the company's poor performance, had been pressuring the company's board of directors to make a change at the top.
Among investors' biggest concerns is Sprint's plan to build a next-generation wireless network using a technology called WiMax. The company has committed itself to spending $5 billion in the next three years to build the network, with about $2 billion of that money earmarked to be spent in the next year to get WiMax coverage to about 100 million people by the end of 2008.
Wall Street analysts and investors say Sprint's WiMax dreams are an unnecessary and dangerous diversion for the company, which is still struggling two years after the $36 billion Nextel merger to realize any of the cost savings that had been promised when the merger was announced.
"They need to get back to the basics and learn how to run a wireless company. This means focusing more on the present rather than the future."
--Patrick Comack, equities analyst, Zachary Research
"They should stop the WiMax rollout immediately," said Patrick Comack, an equities analyst with Zachary Research. "They need to get back to the basics and learn how to run a wireless company. This means focusing more on the present rather than the future."
But without an ambitious plan for the future, Sprint's long-term prospects look even more bleak. The reason is simple. Cell phone penetration in the U.S. market is approaching saturation. For Sprint to grow, therefore, it will have to steal customers from competitors.
But Sprint, the third largest operator in the U.S., may face a tough sell trying to entice customers to abandon their existing service for something similar. Unless Sprint wants to launch an all-out price war on its services, the company will need to present new, compelling features that no one else is offering.
"Sprint needs to have something sexy in the marketplace," said Colin Orviss, head of telecommunications strategic consulting for Patni Computer Systems, a global systems integrator. "A new 4G network using WiMax with truly new and differentiated services layered on top would help Sprint stand out from the competition. And that's what is needed to make a service more interesting to customers."
Since Sprint acquired Nextel in 2005, the company's stock has declined roughly 27 percent. And as competitors such as AT&T and Verizon Wireless add revenue and subscribers, Sprint has steadily been losing customers. On Monday, the company said it plans to report that it's lost about 337,000 "post paid" customers in the third quarter of 2007.
Last week, activist investor Ralph Whitworth, who owns about 2 percent of Sprint's outstanding stock, told The Wall Street Journal that he had lost confidence in Forsee and expected the board to take action. Whitworth has been among the loudest critics of Sprint's WiMax strategy.
Sprint's board looks to be heeding this advice with Forsee, one of the fathers of the WiMax strategy. Once a new CEO takes charge, the company's aggressive plans could be tabled indefinitely.
For now, Sprint says it is moving forward with its WiMax plans.
"I can't speculate about what a new CEO will do," said Leigh Horner, spokeswoman for the company. "But for now, we are continuing to build out the WiMax network. We expect a soft launch of the service by the end of this year and a commercial launch in April of next year."
Sprint's plans to build a 4G wireless network took shape about a year ago, only months after the company launched its 3G wireless network based on EV-DO cellular technology. Using a nationwide swath of vacant 2.5GHz spectrum, the company selected WiMax, an IP-based wireless technology, as the basis for the network. Mobile WiMax promises to offer data speeds faster than current 3G wireless networks and over much longer distances than comparably fast Wi-Fi technology, which today is used mostly indoors to provide wireless broadband hot spots.
Technology giants Intel and Motorola jumped onboard as partners. Motorola promised to provide infrastructure equipment and handsets for the network, while Intel promised to seed the market with millions of WiMax-enabled devices.
Sprint said it would spend $5 billion to reach some 185 million people within three years. But many critics have viewed Sprint's decision to use WiMax, which has not been proven as an effective mobile access technology, as risky.
There are other risks to the strategy. Because WiMax is still so new, more devices need to support the technology for it to be appealing to consumers. Intel has already said it will include WiMax technology in its next-generation chipsets sold to laptop makers, but there's a risk consumers won't spend the extra money to add the feature to their computers.
At the same time, Sprint will have to come up with new services that compel consumers to subscribe to its WiMax network over data services offered from competitors, such as Verizon Wireless and AT&T.
Sprint has already announced that it's partnering with Google to provide users of the WiMax network with integrated Web services from the search giant, including e-mail, chat and social-networking tools. The two companies plan to work together to develop a mobile Internet portal over WiMax that will enable access to many of the Google services.
In the meantime, Sprint's aggressive timeline has been costing the company. To help curb some of these construction expenses, the company announced in July that it would partner with Clearwire, a start-up headed by cell phone pioneer Craig McCaw, to collaborate on building the network.
But even with this partnership, Wall Street analysts say Sprint is spending entirely too much on such a risky venture, especially at a time when it really needs to concentrate resources on completing the integration of the Nextel service with its existing Sprint cellular business.
"It makes sense for Sprint to do something with the wireless spectrum assets," said Steve Clement, an equities analyst with research analyst firm Pacific Crest Securities. "But I think the plan is too aggressive. It's just not clear to me what benefit the company will get by spending this kind of capital on this particular technology."
In terms of building a long-term strategy, Sprint may have little other choice. If the company decides to abandon the WiMax network to focus on its core business, it risks losing an opportunity to be the first to offer new and innovative services.
While AT&T and Verizon Wireless have not announced plans to use WiMax to build a next-generation network, the companies are rolling out more network capacity on their cellular networks. As the third largest player in the market, Sprint could find itself competing for new subscribers mostly on price rather than on service features and functionality.
On the flip side, Sprint's current WiMax strategy could disrupt the market with an entirely new business model, since the WiMax network not only promises to provide wireless broadband access to cell phones and PDAs, but also to a whole cadre of portable consumer electronics devices, such as music players and gaming devices.
WiMax would also allow Sprint to offer service in an IP environment, which over time should improve the efficiency and cost of the delivering the service. It should also provide more opportunity to introduce new services much more quickly.
Telecom consultant Orviss believes patience is in order when assessing the merits of WiMax, since it often takes years for networks to reach their full potential.
"Just look at 3G," he said. "We've been waiting for years for 3G to solve all the world's problems. But it has taken five years longer than anyone expected for services to even get rolled out. Operators still aren't getting their return on investment."
http://news.zdnet.com/2100-1035_22-6212618.html
WiMax Fears After Sprint Nextel Turmoil
>This article, which came out a short time ago, expresses my sentiment, but of course, the right words from Sprint would also send CLWR flying....not willing to wait for it though....looking at possible re-entry in the future<
Published: October 9 2007 19:21 | Last updated: October 9 2007 19:21
Gary Forsee’s hasty departure from Sprint Nextel could derail its most ambitious project – the $5bn rollout of a nationwide broadband wireless network based on an emerging technology standard called WiMax.
Sprint Nextel’s board has said it is focusing on external candidates to replace Mr Forsee and hopes to complete the search quickly. The new chief executive is certain to focus initially on improving Sprint Nextel’s performance in core areas such as customer service, subscriber retention and network integration following the troubled $36bn acquisition of Nextel Communications two years ago.
But analysts and industry insiders say Mr Forsee’s successor will also likely take a close look at the strategy of competing with AT&T’s mobile business and Verizon Wireless, the market leaders. In particular, the new chief executive will want to scrutinise the assumptions underpinning the WiMax project, dubbed ‘Xohm’, and Sprint Nextel’s partnership with Clearwire, a WiMax pioneer.
“We would expect longer-term initiatives such as the Clearwire WiMax partnership to be [put] on hold and subject to review by a new leadership team,” said Jason Amstrong, a Goldman Sachs analyst , in a note to investors on Tuesday. Clearwire’s share price was sharply down last week on speculation of a change in Sprint Nextel’s management.
It was only a year ago that Mr Forsee, flanked by executives from Intel, Samsung and Motorola, announced his plans to roll out a nationwide 4G network by 2010 based on WiMax.
Then last month, announcing a Clearwire partnership to speed the deployment of the 4G network, Sprint Nextel broadened the project’s scope and raised its cost estimates to $5bn.
Senior Sprint executives say they have at least a two-year lead in deploying a 4G network capable of delivering DSL broadband-style data connections to road warriors, and providing cost-effective fixed broadband access to rural clients that allows machines and vehicles to communicate.
But not everyone has welcomed the move. Investors such as Ralph Whitworth, who holds a 1.9 per cent stake in the company, question the wisdom of spending so much on a network based on relatively unproved technology. Others wonder if customers who were slow to adopt wireless data services are ready for WiMax.
Such doubts have been dismissed by WiMax advocates including Motorola, which has placed its own big bet on the technology, although it also supports alternatives.
On paper at least, WiMax looks good – it delivers three times the data rate and two times the spectral efficiency of current technologies at half the cost.
If Sprint Nextel’s new chief executive decides to slow or halt the Xohm project, it would be a blow to WiMax developers.
It might also reinforce the reputation of the US as a telecommunications industry follower. Motorola already has 12 commercial WiMax contracts and more than 40 WiMax trials under way in countries such as Pakistan and Germany, and, at least for the moment, the US.
Copyright The Financial Times Limited 2007
http://www.ft.com/cms/s/0/96812efe-7693-11dc-ad83-0000779fd2ac.html
Out @20.77 from 20.95. em
It may stay at these levels or fly on news, but risk and uncertainty for Forsee's departure may drive it down further imo.
Forsee Steps Down as Chairman, CEO of Sprint Nextel
BusinessWire - October 08, 2007 4:31 PM ET
Related Quotes
Symbol Last Chg
S Trade 18.50 -0.51
Real time quote.
Sprint Nextel announced today that Gary Forsee is stepping down as the company's chairman, president and chief executive officer (CEO), effective immediately. A committee of the Sprint Nextel Board of Directors has been formed and is conducting the search for a new CEO.
James Hance, Jr., a member of the Board of Directors, will assume the role of acting non-executive chairman of the Board. Paul Saleh, current chief financial officer of Sprint Nextel, will serve as acting CEO until a permanent replacement for Forsee is named. With Hance serving in the position of non-executive chairman, the position of lead independent director, held by Irvine Hockaday, will be combined with that role. Hockaday will remain a member of the Board.
"On behalf of the entire board and the Sprint Nextel employees, we want to thank Gary for his dedication and leadership and all of the contributions he has made since becoming chief executive of Sprint in 2003," said Hockaday.
According to Hockaday, the decision to seek a new CEO was based on the Board's belief that it is the right time to put in place new leadership to move the company forward in improving its performance and realizing corporate objectives.
"The Board's search for selecting its next chief executive will focus on candidates outside the company," said Hockaday. "We fully expect that the search will be concluded in a timely manner and we are focused on selecting the right candidate to guide the company to achieve its full potential. Sprint Nextel has the assets, spectrum, customer base and technology to be the leader in wireless mobility services."
Updated Operational Metrics and Financial Guidance
The company announced today that it expects to report a net loss of approximately 337,000 post-paid subscribers in the third quarter. In addition, both adjusted OIBDA* and consolidated operating revenue for 2007 are expected to be slightly below the range of previously provided guidance of $11.0 to $11.5 billion of adjusted OIBDA and $41 to $42 billion of consolidated operating revenue.
Sprint Nextel will release its third-quarter financial results on Thursday, Nov. 1, 2007.
Additional Background on Hance and Saleh
Hance, 63, a senior advisor to The Carlyle Group, is retired vice chairman and former member of the Board of Directors of Bank of America Corporation, where he served as vice chairman from 1993 until January 2005 and as the chief financial officer of Bank of America Corporation from 1988 until April 2004. He is a director of Cousins Properties Incorporated, Duke Energy Corporation and Rayonier Corporation. He has been a member of the Sprint Nextel Board since February 2005.
Saleh, 50, has served as chief financial officer since the merger of Sprint and Nextel. Prior to the merger he had been executive vice president and chief financial officer for Nextel since joining the company in 2001. Before joining Nextel, Saleh was senior vice president and chief financial officer at Walt Disney International from 1997 to 2001, and also served as senior vice president and treasurer for The Walt Disney Company. Prior to Disney, Saleh served as treasurer of Honeywell, where he spent 12 years in various leadership positions in finance, treasury, investor relations, strategic planning and operations.
*FINANCIAL MEASURES
Sprint Nextel provides financial measures generated using generally accepted accounting principles (GAAP) and using adjustments to GAAP (non-GAAP). The non-GAAP financial measures reflect industry conventions, or standard measures of liquidity, profitability or performance commonly used by the investment community for comparability purposes. These non-GAAP measures are not measurements under accounting principles generally accepted in the United States. These measurements should be considered in addition to, but not as a substitute for, the information contained in our financial statements prepared in accordance with GAAP. We have defined below each of the non-GAAP measures we use, but these measures may not be synonymous to similar measurement terms used by other companies.
Because Sprint Nextel does not predict special items that might occur in the future, and our forecasts are developed at a level of detail different than that used to prepare GAAP-based financial measures, Sprint Nextel does not provide reconciliations to GAAP of its forward-looking financial measures.
The measure used in this release includes the following:
Adjusted OIBDA is defined as operating income before depreciation, amortization, restructuring and asset impairments, and special items. This non-GAAP measure should be used in addition to, but not as a substitute for, the analysis provided in the statement of operations. We believe that Adjusted OIBDA provide useful information to investors because they are an indicator of the strength and performance of our ongoing business operations, including our ability to fund discretionary spending such as capital expenditures, spectrum acquisitions and other investments and our ability to incur and service debt.
While depreciation and amortization are considered operating costs under generally accepted accounting principles, these expenses primarily represent non-cash current period allocation of costs associated with long-lived assets acquired or constructed in prior periods. Adjusted OIBDA is a calculation commonly used as a basis for investors, analysts and credit rating agencies to evaluate and compare the periodic and future operating performance and value of companies within the telecommunications industry.
Cautionary Note Regarding Forward-Looking Statements
This news release includes "forward-looking statements" within the meaning of the securities laws. The statements in this news release regarding forward-looking guidance, as well as other statements that are not historical facts, are forward-looking statements. Forward-looking statements are estimates and projections reflecting management's judgment based on currently available information and involve a number of risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially from those suggested by the forward-looking statements. With respect to these forward-looking statements, management has made assumptions regarding, among other things, customer and network usage, customer growth and retention, pricing, operating costs, the timing of various events and the economic environment.
Future performance cannot be assured. Actual results may differ materially from those in the forward-looking statements. Some factors that could cause actual results to differ include:
-- the effects of vigorous competition, including the impact of competition on the price we are able to charge customers for services we provide and our ability to attract new customers and retain existing customers; the overall demand for our service offerings, including the impact of decisions of new subscribers between our post-paid and prepaid services offerings and between our two network platforms; and the impact of new, emerging and competing technologies on our business;
-- the impact of overall wireless market penetration on our ability to attract and retain customers with good credit standing and the intensified competition among wireless carriers for those customers;
-- the uncertainties related to the benefits of our merger with Nextel Communications, Inc., including anticipated synergies and cost savings and the timing thereof;
-- the potential impact of difficulties we may encounter in connection with the integration of the pre-merger Sprint and Nextel businesses, and the integration of the businesses and assets of certain of the third party affiliates, or PCS Affiliates, that provide wireless personal communications services, or PCS, under the Sprint(R) brand that we have acquired, and Nextel Partners, Inc., including the risk that these difficulties could prevent or delay our realization of the cost savings and other benefits we expect to achieve as a result of these integration efforts and the risk that we will be unable to continue to retain key employees;
-- the uncertainties related to the implementation of our business strategies, investments in our networks, our systems, and other businesses, including investments required in connection with our planned deployment of a next generation broadband wireless network;
-- the costs and business risks associated with providing new services and entering new geographic markets, including with respect to our development of new services expected to be provided using the next generation broadband wireless network that we plan to deploy;
-- the impact of potential adverse changes in the ratings afforded our debt securities by ratings agencies;
-- the ability of our wireless segment to continue to grow and improve profitability;
-- the ability of our long distance segment to achieve expected revenues;
-- the effects of mergers and consolidations and new entrants in the communications industry and unexpected announcements or developments from others in the communications industry;
-- unexpected results of litigation filed against us;
-- the inability of third parties to perform to our requirements under agreements related to our business operations;
-- no significant adverse change in Motorola, Inc.'s ability or willingness to provide handsets and related equipment and software applications or to develop new technologies or features for our integrated Digital Enhanced Network, or iDEN(R), network;
-- the impact of adverse network performance, including, but not limited to, any performance issues resulting from reduced network capacity and other adverse impacts resulting from the reconfiguration of the 800 megahertz, or MHz, band used to operate our iDEN network, as contemplated by the Federal Communications Commission's, or FCC's, Report and Order, released in August 2004 as supplemented thereafter;
-- the costs of compliance with regulatory mandates, particularly requirements related to the FCC's Report and Order, deployment of enhanced 911, or E911, services on the iDEN network and privacy-related matters;
-- equipment failure, natural disasters, terrorist acts, or other breaches of network or information technology security;
-- one or more of the markets in which we compete being impacted by changes in political or other factors such as monetary policy, legal and regulatory changes or other external factors over which we have no control; and
-- other risks referenced from time to time in our filings with the SEC, including our Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2006, in Part I, Item 1A, "Risk Factors," and our quarterly reports on Form 10-Q filed in 2007.
Sprint Nextel believes these forward-looking statements are reasonable; however, you should not place undue reliance on forward-looking statements, which are based on current expectations and speak only as of the date of this release. Sprint Nextel is not obligated to publicly release any revisions to forward-looking statements to reflect events after the date of this release.
About Sprint Nextel
Sprint Nextel (NYSE:S) offers a comprehensive range of wireless and wireline communications services bringing the freedom of mobility to consumers, businesses and government users. Sprint Nextel is widely recognized for developing, engineering and deploying innovative technologies, including two robust wireless networks serving 54 million customers at the end of the second quarter 2007; industry-leading mobile data services; instant national and international walkie-talkie capabilities; and a global Tier 1 Internet backbone. For more information, visit www.sprint.com.
SOURCE: Sprint Nextel
Sprint Nextel
Media Relations:
Leigh Horner, 703-433-3044
leigh.horner@sprint.com
or
Investor Relations:
Kurt Fawkes, 800-259-3755
investor.relations@sprint.com
< Return to Previous
http://biz.yahoo.com/bw/071008/20071008006175.html?.v=1
4:33 pm Sprint Nextel Sees 3Q Net Loss 337,000 Post-Paid Subscribers >S Dow Jones Newswires
4:32 pm Sprint Nextel's Gary Forsee steps down as CEO, chairman Marketwatch
4:32 pm Sprint Nextel: James Hance Jr To Serve As Acting Chmn >S Dow Jones Newswires
4:32 pm Sprint Nextel: Paul Saleh Named Acting CEO >S Dow Jones Newswires
4:32 pm Sprint Nextel: Co. Conducting Outside Search For New CEO >S Dow Jones Newswires
4:31 pm Forsee Steps Down as Chairman, CEO of Sprint Nextel BusinessWire
4:31 pm Forsee Steps Dn As Chmn, CEO Of Sprint Nextel Dow Jones Newswires
4:32 pm Sprint Nextel: James Hance Jr To Serve As Acting Chmn >S Dow Jones Newswires
1 minute ago Sprint Nextel's Gary Forsee steps down as CEO, chairman - MarketWatch
Yeah, Me too. I've had my fingers waiting on the keyboard all day since pre-market!
4:20[S] Sprint Nextel halted in late trading; last trade at $18.50 Marketwatch
It's possible.
It'd be nice if Sprint would clarify the matter either way.
'Sprint: No response to reports Forsee will leave soon'
http://www.bnd.com/336/story/147667.html
http://www.usatoday.com/money/industries/telecom/2007-10-07-sprint-ceo_N.htm?csp=34
(fwiw) Regulation FD Violation:
If Sprint CEO Forsee were to be actually stepping down, that the supposed undisclosed individual(s) supplying the information to the WSJ and USA today (likely sprint board member(s)), would seem to be violating FD.
Regarding the timing of actual disclosure under Reg. FD:
"The timing of the required public disclosure depends on whether the selective disclosure was intentional or non-intentional; for an intentional selective disclosure, the issuer must make public disclosure simultaneously; for a non-intentional disclosure, the issuer must make public disclosure promptly."
http://www.sec.gov/rules/final/33-7881.htm
What a Future IPhone With WiMax Might Look Like
By Bryan Gardiner Email 10.04.07 | 11:00 AM
Imagine an iPhone from Apple that makes VOIP calls, gets faster-than-Wi-Fi internet access, and boasts weeks of battery life. Best of all, it's not tied to a pokey Edge network.
Taiwan's DigiTimes reports the rumor that Apple will base future iPhone versions on Intel's upcoming Moorestown processors -- low-power, high-performance systems-on-a-chip aimed at smartphones and mobile handsets.
The rumors sparked a lot of excitement on Mac gossip sites and forums about better battery life and increased software compatibility with Apple's Macs.
What many ignored, however, is the fact that Intel's Moorestown processors will also be an integrated WiMax platform. Intel has already announced that its Moorestown platform will feature a CPU, fast 3-D graphics, HD video decoding, Wi-Fi and WiMax on a single chip.
"The iPhone is the perfect device for Moorestown," says analyst Roger Kay of Endpoint Technologies. "I mean, (the iPhone) is really a mobile internet device with a phone tacked on for good measure."
WiMax is an emerging standard for 4-G wireless data networks that promises maximum download speeds of 70 mbps -- more than six times the speed of 802.11b Wi-Fi's 11 mbps. In practice though, WiMax speeds will likely not reach the theoretical maximum, but will probably match that of Wi-Fi.
After years in the lab, WiMax is about to go mainstream, according to Intel. In 2008, the first devices from the likes of Nokia, Lenovo, Toshiba and others will debut. At the same time, Sprint Nextel and Clearwire are working on nationwide WiMax networks, which should be completed by 2010. Intel is on task to begin Moorestown production in 2009.
The Santa Clara, California-based chipmaker has been a strong proponent of WiMax over the years. WiMax will theoretically compete with Wi-Fi and let service providers build ultra-fast networks using radio antennas. A WiMax-enabled iPhone could even signal the end of the traditional carrier-pricing models, because high-speed internet network connectivity would become virtually ubiquitous.
Intel is a powerful ally of the WiMax technology. After all, Intel's Centrino chip set is a major reason Wi-Fi is now nearly universal, and the company is hoping Moorestown will do the same for WiMax.
Apple's adoption of Moorestown could also provide a big boost. The research firm iSuppli predicts Apple will sell close to 22 million iPhones in 2009.
Whether Apple uses Moorestown processors for the iPhone, iSuppli says WiMax will find its way into devices like the Blackberry and other smartphones.
"You have to remember Apple isn't the only device maker that could be implementing WiMax," says Kay. "Everybody's seen this timeline. It's certainly no secret that a lot of companies are going down this road."
However, Apple’s position on WiMax remains unknown. Apple did not respond to requests for comment.
Tina Teng, iSuppli's mobile communications analyst, says Intel is a force to be reckoned with, but there could be stiff competition from other 4-G wireless technologies. Other semiconductor vendors are supporting a technology known as LTE, an ongoing project to improve the existing 3-G UMTS mobile phone standard.
Which brings up another potential problem: As Chris Hazelton, senior analyst for mobile devices at IDC, notes, there might also be sticky exclusivity deals with AT&T that could hamper Apple's WiMax iPhone ambitions -- if indeed it has any.
AT&T itself is currently working on building out its own 3-G high-speed downlink packet access, HSDPA, network and has already said it's not interested in joining the likes of Sprint and Clearwire in WiMax build-outs.
In that sense, the real key to Apple's WiMax decision may come down to whether there's a decent infrastructure for iPhone customers to use in the first place.
http://www.wired.com/gadgets/mac/news/2007/10/wimax_iphone
WiMax threatens to disrupt 4G strategies
October 08 2007
Global telecoms operators must make “critical decisions” about 4G strategies as mobile WiMax (802.16e) moves from trials to real-world network deployments.
A new study from ABI Research suggests that mobile operators and other service providers are planning mobile WiMax networks all over the world, mainly in the 2.5GHz and 3.5GHz bands.
“The mobile wireless industry is in a state of major change as mobile operators decide which IP-OFDMA path they will take for their 4G networks,” said ABI principal mobile broadband analyst Philip Solis.
“The new and unproven (on a large commercial scale) mobile WiMax has positioned itself against the potential Goliath that Long Term Evolution (LTE) is expected to become.”
The research firm forecasts “substantial numbers” of WiMax subscribers worldwide, more than 95 million using customer premises equipment devices by 2012, and almost 200 million using mobile devices, with some overlap between the two.
Solis said that, while WiMax equipment interoperability certification timelines have slipped somewhat, and LTE benefits from having evolved out of the widely-deployed GSM technology, WiMax has at least a two-year head start in reaching the market.
The analyst noted that major semiconductor and equipment makers, with the exception of Qualcomm and Ericsson, are staking out their positions for this emerging sector, while operator enthusiasm, led by Sprint and Clearwire in the US, is rising sharply.
Vodafone is looking to WiMax for some of its newer markets such as the Middle East and Eastern Europe, and BT and Telecom Italia Mobile are also showing interest.
ABI Research understands that another as yet unnamed “major European mobile operator” is “seriously considering” WiMax.
http://www.techcentral.ie/articles/WiMax/view
Sprint up about 2 1/2% in premarket. em
Let's hope the 'Bear Stearns' Factor holds up!
"we looked at the historical recommendations from Bear since the stock went public earlier this year and found that if anything, the stock should be trading up, since the stock has done nothing but go in the opposite direction of their calls.
http://seekingalpha.com/article/49141-misguided-selling-bear-s-clearwire-downgrade-tanks-shares
CLWR is up nominally in premarket this morning with less than an hour to go
be opening.
Sprint may be making an announcement today:
Oct 08 12:41 AM
The story, which riveted the telecom world, put a spotlight on Sprint. The company responded with a firm "no comment," but the attention put pressure on the board: As a publicly traded company, Sprint is obliged to disclose "material" developments that might be of interest to investors. No development is more material, perhaps, than a CEO change.
http://www.usatoday.com/money/industries/telecom/2007-10-07-sprint-ceo_N.htm?csp=34
Also there must be an expected clarification with the other Sprint is involved with:
October 07, 2007
There are other potential losers if Sprint changes course. Intel (INTC) has put a lot of money into WiMax. It plans to supply WiMax-enabled chips for PCs and handheld devices. INTC also put several hundred million dollars into Clearwire. Another earlier investor in McCaw's company was Motorola (MOT). It is hoping to sell handsets and infrastructure to make the national WiMax system work.
If Sprint's WiMax plans blow-up, there will be a lot of wounded.
http://www.247wallst.com/2007/10/will-ceo-change.html
Searching all these stories since Friday, it's easy to see the constant flow of WiMax developments moving forward daily with other major players.
I think the worst case scenario with Sprint will not be that bad.
That would, if it were to happen, be Forsee stepping to the side with the new Sprint CEO moving forward with WiMax plans uninterrupted, while trying to improve Sprint's traditional business. WiMax's development and commitment across the industry is in full gear.
Also, if there were to be a CEO change at Sprint, it in all likelihood wouldn't be until the end of 2007, within that short time, this is already is progress and completed and then Sprint is already at the point of XOHM's commercial services being available:
Sept. 27:
Sprint announced today that its WiMAX service will be marketed under the XOHMTM ingredient brand (pronounced ZOAM). A soft launch of the WiMAX network is expected by the end of 2007 in the Chicago and Baltimore/Washington markets. XOHM commercial services are expected to be available beginning in the first half of 2008.
Barry West, President of 4G Mobile Broadband and Sprint's Chief Technology Officer, noted that XOHM is expected to mobilize the Internet by driving the convergence of telecommunications, consumer electronics and the computer industries. WiMAX service is being designed to create synergies among disparate industries through an ecosystem of chipsets, devices, networks, services/content and distribution to deliver broadband with speeds up to five times faster than current third-generation wireless devices. West said that ecosystem partners have committed to embed 50 million WiMAX chipsets in devices.
There is significant momentum around Sprint's WiMAX efforts. Since announcing its initial plans nearly a year ago, the company has greatly expanded its ecosystem of device, chip and other partners and selected Google to bring WiMAX mobile Internet customers search, interactive communications and social networking tools through a new mobile portal.
http://news.thomasnet.com/companystory/528720/rss/
October 7, 2007
EXCELLENT ARTICLE ALL SHOULD READ!
MAXimum access
Indianapolis will be among cities where new wireless technology WiMAX debuts
By Erika D. Smith
erika.smith@indystar.com
October 7, 2007
One day in the not-so-distant future, Wi-Fi -- and all the hotels, coffee shops and park benches where you can access it -- won't be what's hot in Indianapolis.
The whole city -- and several suburbs -- will be smoking with a new technology for wireless Internet access called WiMAX.
Sprint Nextel Corp. and rival Clearwire Corp. have pledged to provide the service to 100 million people and businesses in about two dozen cities by the end of next year.
Indianapolis is on that list. The rollout is set for mid-2008.
Motorola and Samsung are installing the hardware. But Sprint Nextel and Clearwire stand to gain the most by becoming leaders in this sprouting arm of telecom for which analysts see nothing but dollar signs. They also have the most to lose if the technology fails to catch on.
"WiMAX is kind of a big change from wireless systems in the past," said Daniel Coombes, Motorola's senior vice president of WiMAX and Advanced Technology Home and Networks Mobility.
With WiMAX, consumers using laptop computers with the right add-on hardware will be able to surf the Web from anywhere.
That means no hunting down Wi-Fi hot spots and then worrying about wandering out of range. Videos streaming from YouTube won't appear choppy. Web radio stations won't skip. And download speeds will rival the fastest wired connections from cable and DSL providers.
Eventually, consumers will be able to use WiMAX in a new breed of electronics. For example, uploading 50 photos from a digital camera to the Web without a PC could become common.
"WiMAX does for the marketplace what Wi-Fi wasn't able to do," said Atish Gude, senior vice president of business operations for Xohm, the WiMAX division of Sprint Nextel.
Indeed, until recently, there was a lot of talk about building citywide Wi-Fi networks with free or dirt-cheap access. But Internet service providers realized the business model wouldn't work; several cities, including San Francisco and Chicago, scrapped Wi-Fi plans.
Smaller cities fared better, but they have had issues, too.
Brownsburg, for example, began deploying a Wi-Fi network this year, but had to stop so it could get permission to put Wi-Fi antennae on Duke Energy Corp.'s light poles. An OK from the Indiana Utility Regulatory Commission came on Sept. 26, said Angeline Protogere of Duke Energy. Such delays are common nationwide. In some cases, they've become barriers.
"It's not entirely clear why energy companies across the country are doing this other than speculation that they have a plan to sell broadband over power lines," said Andy Hall, president of Moving Target Technologies, which is installing the Wi-Fi network in its hometown of Brownsburg.
Indianapolis toyed with the idea of building a Wi-Fi network, but no one could decide who would pay for it. And since Sprint Nextel is building a WiMAX network here, the question may never come up again.
"They could never get the numbers to crunch right," said Jeb Conrad, executive director of Indianapolis Economic Development.
The rapid cool-off toward Wi-Fi hovered over the partylike atmosphere of the WiMAX World USA trade show in Chicago last month. Even as industry executives touted the future of WiMAX, they acknowledged the rash promises about Wi-Fi.
"It was a failed business model, not a failed business," said Michael Dillon, vice president of business development for Firetide, a California developer of wireless mesh networks. "There's nothing wrong with wireless. There's something wrong with trying to get wireless for free."
So don't expect WiMAX to be free.
Sprint Nextel hasn't released pricing information. Guide said it will be "affordable," but comparable to other broadband service. "We will not have plans that force customers to switch off cable or DSL," he said. "We will have plans on devices that people can add on. They'll have bundles that they can use at home and away."
In the beginning, WiMAX will be about mobility -- the ability to get online from anywhere. When the network is stronger and can reach inside buildings, it could be an alternative to cable or DSL.
Sprint Nextel could become a much bigger player in the telecom industry, with the ability to steal customers from the likes of AT&T and Comcast.
AT&T isn't worried about that, said Brian Ducharme, AT&T Indiana's vice president and general manager for mobility. The telecom giant's only concern is continuing to grow its network. "We have everything that the consumer could want," he said.
Selling point
In some ways, WiMAX is a technology that's just getting its footing. For years, there wasn't a solid technical standard for producing hardware, such as modems for laptop computers.
That has changed. By next year, about 14 million computers will be built with support for WiMAX and Wi-Fi, the way computers support just Wi-Fi today. Consumer electronics manufacturers, such as Samsung, plan to release a slew of gadgets that take advantage of WiMAX. Car stereos that stream music from the Web and cell phones that place calls over the Internet are in the works.
"It's the mobile component that we think will be the selling point," Gude said. "Having that Internet connection available to you wherever you go will change a lot of lives."
People already are subscribing. WiMAX service providers, including Clearwire, made $322 million last year, according to research firm Maravedis. Nearly 60 percent of the subscribers were residential users, and 42 percent were business users.
Better and cheaper
Why the rush?
Most experts agree it's a better technology.
With Wi-Fi, the number of computers connected to the network, the proximity of the user to the antenna and the degree to which buildings block the radio waves can affect the strength and speed of a wireless connection.
WiMAX is different. Users don't need to be in a direct line of sight to the antenna, and built-in quality controls make it easier to allocate bandwidth. That means fewer slowdowns.
When it comes to deployment, WiMAX is cheaper because street-level antennae aren't needed. Brownsburg, for example, needs to put up 100 to 150 Wi-Fi antennae on light poles. With WiMAX, covering the city would require only five antennae -- on cellular towers.
Sprint Nextel already owns cellular towers. "This is easy for them to deploy," Hall said.
And Sprint Nextel already owns a big chunk of the spectrum for WiMAX. Clearwire owns another chunk. Ownership of the rest is a matter of debate with the Federal Communications Commission. Therefore, it's unlikely Sprint Nextel's rivals will launch WiMAX service of their own anytime soon.
But Sprint Nextel's network could increase competition enough to drive down prices for DSL and cable broadband, and perhaps improve their quality.
"I think it will be a positive for consumers, whether they adopt it or not," Hall said.
http://www.indystar.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20071007/BUSINESS/710070367
With Sprints (Wimax) agreements with Intel, Motorola, Samsung, Nokia and Google and the literally many billions of dollars at stake, I think they will be responding fairly quickly to the speculation about Sprint Nextel CEO Gary Forsee and it's soon to be concluded agreement with CLWR.
Of course just responding about Forsee alone, pretty settles the concern which impacted Clearwire yesterday.
fwiw, Just happened to notice that CLearwire and Sprint's major call centers are fairly close to each other.
Clearwire's, which is expanding to over 400 employees.
Article:
http://www.clearwire.com/company/news/04_03_07.php
Map: http://maps.google.com/maps?f=q&hl=en&geocode=&time=&date=&ttype=&q=milton,+....
-and-
Sprint's, which is currently expanding to over 450 reps:
Article:
http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=conewsstory&refer=conews&tkr=S:US&sid=aVC2MTPTScM....
Map:
http://maps.google.com/maps?f=q&hl=en&time=&date=&ttype=&q=Panama+City,+Bay,+Flo...
Sprint Nextel / Clearwire Agreement Status:
Sprint's Clearwire Talks Taking Longer Than Expected (Update1)
By Crayton Harrison
Oct. 5 (Bloomberg) -- Sprint Nextel Corp., the third-biggest U.S. mobile-phone service provider, said negotiations to build a wireless network with Clearwire Corp. are taking longer than expected.
The company still anticipates completing work on an agreement in the next few weeks, spokesman James Fisher said today in an interview. On July 19, Clearwire and Reston, Virginia-based Sprint announced plans to sign a contract within 60 days.
http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=conewsstory&refer=conews&tkr=S:US&sid=ayg_iKSD49F...
Sprint & WiMax
Broadband Unstrung
OCTOBER 05, 2007
4:40 PM -- It is interesting the WSJ is reporting that Sprint Nextel Corp. (NYSE: S - message board) may give CEO Gary Forsee the boot, in part because the operator is spending billions on deploying a new WiMax network in the U.S.
What exactly are Sprint's other options though? The Reston, Va.-based carrier is already the smallest of the big three mobile players in the U.S. after AT&T Inc. (NYSE: T - message board) and Verizon Wireless . The company needs something to help it gain ground on its rivals, something that isn't happening at the moment.
So let's review what Sprint could do:
* Work on better integrating the Sprint CDMA and Nextel iDEN networks. This is already happening to a degree with new push-to-talk features coming to CDMA. Making it happen faster would likely boost customer satisfaction but may not help to add many new customers. Sprint's rivals are also working on similar systems.
* Sell off its WiMax spectrum. This would definitely give the company a nice short-term cash boost. It is, however, a bit like selling the family jewels. The nationwide 2.5 GHz spectrum footprint that Sprint has is the only thing that gives it a unique advantage over rivals. Selling it off would merely postpone the need to move to fourth-generation networks and destroy Sprint's ability to do anything different from its larger competitors.
* Drop the WiMax plans and wait for 4G CDMA ultra-mobile broadband. To my mind, this is just as much of a crapshoot as moving to WiMax, as CDMA may have more name recognition, but CDMA-UMB is further away than WiMax, and vendors have less real-world experience with the technology. Waiting merely postpones the build-out costs by a year or two and -- once gain -- loses the one advantage Sprint currently has over its rivals.
So, moving to WiMax is definitely a gamble. What in the business world isn't?
It seems to me, however, that WiMax is the best shot that Sprint has at augmenting its subscriber base over the next five years. I believe the "do nothing" options would likely leave the carrier looking at a continuing slump in its subscriber base over time.
— Dan Jones, Site Editor, Unstrung
http://www.unstrung.com/blog.asp?blog_sectionid=414&doc_id=135649
Surprising!
Good opportunity to get back in or trade.
'If' they clarify anything with the Forsee at Sprint or the progress of the agreement between Sprint and Clearwire, should fly.
Bill
Analysts Express Uncertainty about Forsee's Fate at Sprint Nextel
Friday, October 5, 2007 - 2:25 PM CDT
Kansas City Business Journal - by Steve Vockrodt Staff Writer
Some analysts appear skeptical of published reports that the Sprint Nextel Corp. board has launched a clandestine search for CEO Gary Forsee's successor.
A Sprint Nextel spokesman said Friday that the company won't comment on rumors and speculation that first appeared Thursday in an article on The Wall Street Journal's Web site.
The story reported that activist investor Ralph Whitworth, principal of Relational Investors LLC, which owns about 2 percent of Sprint Nextel's outstanding stock, was dissatisfied with the company's performance.
Whitworth didn't call for Forsee to step down, to the article said, but suggested that the company sell its long-distance business and fiber-optic network.
Berge Ayvazian, chief strategy officer with The Yankee Group, based in Boston, said he viewed Whitworth's comments more as a ploy to shake up Sprint Nextel's stock performance in the short term for investors.
As far as I can tell, this is an example of how the online edition of The Wall Street Journal can be twisted around by an investor who wants to change a chief executive in a large corporation," Ayvazian said, noting that Whitworth has used the same tactic with other companies.
Sprint Nextel stock (NYSE: S) surged briefly on the news, opening at $19.57 on Friday. Around 2 p.m., the stock was trading at $18.98, down 30 cents, or 1.6 percent, on volume of 19.2 million shares, according to Yahoo. The stock's average daily volume the past three months is 19.2 million shares.
The Wall Street Journal article cited unnamed sources who said Sprint Nextel's board started searching for Forsee's successor in August, when the company announced disappointing second-quarter results.
For the quarter that ended June 30, Sprint Nextel reported earnings of $19 million, or 1 cent a share. That was down 95 percent from $370 million, or 10 cents a share, a year earlier.
Other analysts painted a picture of Sprint Nextel, which has lagged competitors Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE: VZ) and AT&T Inc. (NYSE: T), as caught in a vise between investors demanding a return for the money in the short term while the company was trying to develop new revenue models in the long term, specifically by building a WiMAX network.
The WiMAX service, which would enable subscribers to access a wide array of wireless broadband Internet, was expected to draw $2 billion to $2.5 billion in revenue by 2010, once the network was built out to several markets.
But it also was going to cost the company $5 billion in capital investment to expand the coverage to leading markets by 2010.
"The things I see Sprint doing are preparing the company for the longer term, transitioning the company for growth going forward," said Jeff Kagan, an Atlanta-based telecommunications industry analyst. "What we're hearing from the investors is, 'Where's the growth this quarter?'"
Growth for Sprint Nextel has been sluggish since its shaky merger with Nextel Corp. in 2005. The deal put the corporate headquarters in Reston, Va., and operational headquarters in Overland Park.
Sprint Nextel's stock sold for $26.02 a share when it was first listed on the NYSE. Shares had dropped as low as $16.75 a share in the past year and have fluttered around $19 a share in recent weeks.
Charles Golvin, an analyst with Forrester Research, said that although Sprint's pre-merger customer base has provided a solid foundation for the combined company, the customers inherited from the Nextel network have been problematic.
"Where they've really struggled is ... the base of customers they acquired from Nextel, who were largely small- and medium-sized business customers," Golvin said.
And although Forsee and Sprint Nextel appeared to hang their hat on future growth from WiMAX, analysts said it could be a risky proposition to assume that consumers will quickly catch on once the network is built out.
"The question is not so much about the WiMAX technology, per se," Golvin said. "It's about the business prospect about customers joining that network and paying an additional subscription fee for that data. You're not going to get people signing up right away."
Sprint Nextel also has had trouble with customer turnover since the merger, with some complaining about the company's unsteady wireless quality and unreliable customer service.
Golvin said that AT&T and Verizon have capitalized on marketing themselves as reliable providers of wireless service and that Sprint Nextel has focused on a more esoteric message of promising more high-tech options and gadgets.
"If you look at the message AT&T and Verizon delivered to the market, it's about network quality and reliability," Golvin said. "Sprint has never tried to deliver that message. I'm not recommending that they should have, but it's clear that this is a story of ... good network performance means a lot to consumers."
Although it remained unclear Friday reports that Forsee may be headed toward Sprint Nextel's exits had any traction, analysts said the tug of war between Sprint Nextel's long-term growth and investors' short-term demands has come to the surface.
"One question we have to ask is: Is this just a strategy from the investors community to shake things up?" Kagan said. "Not necessarily to replace the CEO, but the investment community wants to see action."
svockrodt@bizjournals.com | 816-421-5900
All contents of this site © American City Business Journals Inc. All rights reserved.
http://www.bizjournals.com/kansascity/stories/2007/10/01/daily44.html?ana=from_rss
Chrysler posts 5.4% decline in September U.S. vehicle sales
By Shawn Langlois
Last Update: 3:15 PM ET Oct 2, 2007
SAN FRANCISCO (MarketWatch) -- Chrysler LLC on Tuesday posted a September U.S. sales decline of 5.4% to 159,799, with a 19% rise in car sales taking some of the sting out of an 11% dip on the truck side. The company, now controlled by private equity firm Cerberus Capital Management, blamed the dip on its planned reduction in rental vehicle sales.
http://www.marketwatch.com/news/story/chrysler-posts-54-decline-september/story.aspx?guid=%7B2A9AAB5...
CIBC economist predicts triple digit oil prices
Marketwatch - October 02, 2007 2:35 PM ET
NEW YORK (MarketWatch) -- Oil prices of at least $100 a barrel are expected to become the norm as early as next year, as conventional supplies continue to decline and consumption in the developing world rises, CIBC chief economist Jeff Rubin said Tuesday.
"We're in a world of triple-digit oil prices for the foreseeable future," Rubin said at the CIBC 2nd Annual Industrials Conference. "Whether it's $100 or $140 a barrel ... is up to debate, but the bottom line is we're in the bottom of the ninth inning of the hydrocarbon age."
Rubin said higher oil prices will spur technological innovations, as well as growth in nuclear power and biofuels.
"I'm not sure in 50 or 60 years, oil will still have the role in the global energy market that it does today," he said.
Rubin said more of OPEC's production will go toward fueling its own energy needs.
Despite Wall Street's obsession with oil consumption by China and India, oil use in Russia, Mexico and the OPEC nations outpaced the world's most populous country last year.
In Venezuela and Saudi Arabia, for example, the retail cost of gasoline ranges around 25 cents a gallon -- cheap enough to consume in ever-larger quantities to fuel growth.
At the same time, oil-rich countries such as Kuwait and Mexico are starting to see declines in major oil field supplies, he said.
By 2012, Canadian oil sands could become the single largest source of new oil supply for the U.S. as Mexico's supplies become depleted, he said.
Recent oil sands acquisitions by Royal Dutch Shell (RDSA) and Marathon Oil (MRO) could be the "harbinger of things to come," he said.
Six of the largest oil suppliers to the U.S. are poised to cut their global exports by nearly 2 million barrels a day by 2012, Rubin said.
The projected cut -- amounting to 7% -- by Mexico, Saudi Arabia, Venezuela, Nigeria, Algeria and Russia, "reflect the growing struggle in these countries to grow production and manage their own soaring rates of oil consumption," Rubin said.
Canada's oil sands production is expected to increase to 2.3 million barrels a day by 2015, up from about 1.1 million barrels a day in 2005, according to the U.S. Energy Information Administration.
Rubin's remarks come as big oil companies such as Exxon Mobil (XOM) continue to forecast plenty of fossil fuel to for the world's needs by at least 2030. See full story.
GM's September Sales:
General Motors Sept Light Vehicle Sales 334,974 Vs 334,025
Dow Jones Newswires - October 02, 2007 2:03 PM ET
General Motors Corp. (GM) on Tuesday said it sold 334,974 light vehicles in the U.S. in September, marking a slight improvement from 334,025 a year ago at the same time rivals Ford Motor Co. and Toyota Motor Corp. (TM) handed in declines.
Car sales slid 4.4% while light trucks gained 2.7%, bolstered by strong showings in GM's new full-size pickup and SUV line.
-Shawn Langlois; 415-439-6400; AskNewswires@dowjones.com
Dow Jones Newswires
10-02-07 1402ET
Copyright (c) 2007 Dow Jones & Company, Inc.
FORD's September Sales:
Ford sales to individual retail customers down 15%
12:04 PM ET, Oct 02, 2007 - 8 minutes ago
Ford sales to daily rental companies were down 62%
12:03 PM ET, Oct 02, 2007 - 9 minutes ago
Ford total September sales were 189,863, down 21%
12:02 PM ET, Oct 02, 2007 - 10 minutes ago
GM contract would see four further plant closures: report
By Simon Kennedy
Last Update: 4:40 AM ET Oct 2, 2007
LONDON (MarketWatch) -- General Motors (GM
GM plans to close up to 13 factories -- four more than it has previously announced -- over the next four years if United Auto Workers members approve a new contract, according to a report in the New York Times Tuesday. The plants employ around 2,500 workers, though many would be eligible to retire with full benefits and GM would offer more buyouts, the newspaper reported. The factories include an engine plant in Livonia, near Detroit, as well as another in Parma, Ohio and metal stamping plants in Indianapolis and Flint, Michigan, the report added. End of Story
http://www.marketwatch.com/news/story/gm-contract-would-see-four/story.aspx?guid=%7BD634917A%2DC7A6%...