Thursday April 10, 2008

Motorola to stop Singapore mobile phone production, cutting 700 jobs

news.yahoo.com :

Motorola said on Wednesday [2 Apr 2008] it will stop making mobile phones in Singapore by the end of the year, a move that will result in the loss of 700 jobs. The U.S. firm will continue to base its headquarters for Asia-Pacific in Singapore where it also has units engaged in research and software development. Motorola had said last week that it would split into two publicly traded entities in 2009 to separate its money-losing handset division from the rest of the business which makes devices including television set top boxes and network equipment.

- Motorola has had a troubled history with its mobile phone division and never really had a follow-up hit to its Razr, which was a very good update of its previous hit, the Motorola StarTac. The StarTac CDMA was my first "real" mobile phone, having used the disastrously limited "Zone Phone" before that. It has been Nokia for me all the way since, and today I continue with my preference for the "slim and lean" design with my Nokia E51.

See also :

1. Motorola announces 3500 job cuts as profits slump 48%
2. Motorola says to cut 4000 more jobs

(2008-04-10 23:12:34 SGT) [Biz] Permalink

Crude oil hits record $112.21 per barrel

This article belongs to the NYMEX crude oil price records story arc.

nytimes.com :

Oil rose more than $2 a barrel, after touching a record $112.21, and gasoline jumped to the highest ever after the Energy Department reported an unexpected decline in crude supplies on Wednesday [9 Apr 2008]. The department reported a drop of 3.1 million barrels in oil stockpiles. The intraday record of $112.21 a barrel was the highest since Nymex futures trading began in 1983. Antoine Halff, head of energy research at Newedge USA in New York, said: "Domestic demand isn't great but that's not important. Global demand is still growing and that's what matters."

Oil's 80% gain in the last year is the second biggest among 19 commodities on the Reuters/Jefferies CRB Index, trailing only wheat, which has doubled. Rising global demand for raw materials and a weakening dollar have led to records this year for raw materials including corn, soybeans, rice and gold.

- Crude oil has once again broken through the resistance level of $110 and went on to set a new record. The next resistance levels are probably going to be at $120, $150 and $200. Support levels are at $105, $100, $95, $89 and $85, and don't bet on the last 2 or 3. It was amazing to watch as the price of NYMEX crude oil built up momentum from the $100-105 range, boosted to $106, and then shot up from $108 to over $112 within the past few trading sessions.

The peakoiler community would also like to point out that we are within shouting distance of 3 Yergins which would be $114, 1 Yergin unit being $38 (which is the price he famously said oil would fall to). We peakoilers point it out from time to time just to rub it in and to show how far wrong that particular forecast has been. I think this could easily take place within the next consolidation phase of $110-120 or thereabouts.

See also :

1. Oil hits $111.00 high, breaking records 7 trading days in a row
2. Crude oil hits $110.20 record on dollar fall
3. Crude oil reaches $109.72, breaks records for 5 days running on weak dollar
4. OPEC keeps output steady in face of $100 oil

(2008-04-10 12:39:54 SGT) [Energy] Permalink

Most popular blog postings on lowem.log :

1. 2010 Nissan Leaf electric car specifications : 107hp, 24KWh lithium-ion batteries, 100-mile range
2. 2010 Honda CR-Z hybrid, 2010 Honda Fit/Jazz hybrid models confirmed
3. 2010 Honda Civic Hybrid preliminary specifications released
4. Singapore SIBOR rate falls to 0.69% in Jan 2009, lowest since Apr 2004
5. How to insert currency exchange rates into Google Spreadsheets
6. Singapore : Nuclear power not ruled out
7. Live spot gold price quotes chart on COMEX
8. 2010 Toyota Prius specifications released : 50 mpg, 1.8L, 134hp, Ni-MH, solar roof option

Featured articles on lowem.log :

1. 2010 Honda Civic Hybrid preliminary specifications released
2. 2010 Honda CR-Z hybrid, 2010 Honda Fit/Jazz hybrid models confirmed
3. 2010 Toyota Prius specifications released : 50 mpg, 1.8L, 134hp, Ni-MH, solar roof option
4. Honda, GS Yuasa JV to make lithium-ion batteries for 2010/2011 Honda Civic Hybrid
5. New efficient nanotech materials may boost enhanced geothermal power systems
6. NYMEX crude oil recovers from $32.40 low after 2.2 mbpd OPEC production cut announced
7. Singapore property market recovery seen as private home sales surge 52% in Jul 2009
8. Singapore SIBOR rate falls to 0.69% in Jan 2009, lowest since Apr 2004