So is anyone besides me looking forward to a break from work? Holidays are a good thing and Thanksgiving is no exception. For me, it is a four-day weekend, as the market half-day on Friday is a throw away. I suspect tomorrow’s volume will lighten up as well, so, let’s all start relaxing today. I like that. In fact, I will follow my own dictate; however, before I drop in the easy chair and lounge the day away, I will give you a couple of things to think about. The first pays homage to my economic compulsion.
- Permits for future U.S. home construction rose to their highest level in nearly 5-1/2 years in October, suggesting the housing market recovery remained intact despite recent signs of slowing down. Permits, which lead housing starts by at least a month, were up 13.9 percent from a year ago.
The above is interesting in several ways. Recent reporting from the breathless media has pressed upon us the “numbers” around the housing market “slow down.” In fact, in a conversation with my realtor just last night, I was told that prices in my local real estate market (SLO) had dropped some 7% since June. Understand, the SLO real estate market (San Luis Obispo California) is pricey. The median price of a home here is $420,000 and the demand is always there.
Interestingly, this morning, the FHFA reports that new home pricing rose in September. Numbers for October are not available yet because of the government shutdown. Nevertheless, something is going on in the housing industry, as the numbers are mixed.
Back to my research on the smart device/mass entertainment dance now going on around the world. The shakeout is still happening, as Intel bows out from the foray and Verizon looks to pick up the expensive pieces.
- Intel (INTC) has reportedly set an asking price of $500M for the assets of its would-be Web TV service, and it is hoping to reach a deal by the year-end. Though lacking revenue, the business has potentially valuable IP and software assets. Verizon (VZ) is looking to use the Intel unit as a springboard to offer its own Web TV service and expand its reach.
All of this market grabbing of potential entertainment delivery via smart devices and the ubiquitous wireless network points to an important question – where will the bandwidth come from to satisfy the demand these industrial giants are creating? One answer is below.
- The Defense Department has reached an agreement with the broadcasting industry on sharing some radio airwaves, making progress toward President Barack Obama’s goal of clearing more valuable spectrum for mobile networks. Obama directed federal agencies in June to look for ways to give up or share with the private sector more of the airwaves they control, three years after his call to open up 500 megahertz (MHz) of federal spectrum for commercial use to satisfy growing demands from data-hungry devices and services.
The point is that no matter how one slices it, the cultural/technological shift is coming fast. “Where there is a will, there is a way.” No, that is not exactly correct. It should be: Where there is money to be made, business will find a way.
One more thought and I will be heading to my easy chair …
- Online startups with eye-popping statistics that purport to show their popularity have captivated the attention of the media and investors. Companies boast of everything from skyrocketing Web page views to user sign-ups to shared digital photos as measures of their success. But unlike the financial numbers used to evaluate more mature companies, the so-called “vanity metrics” now in vogue are largely self-reported and often vague enough to defy definition.
The above is something to consider relative to my excitement about the investment opportunities that might be found in the crowdfunding concept now rolling out across the globe. The yin and yang of life speaks – with the good comes the bad. Caveat emptor.
Trade in the day; Invest in your life …
